"Not because I wanted my baby to die, but because I needed this hell to end. But now in Texas, the new laws are creating uncertainties that may deter some doctors and other providers from offering optimal miscarriage treatment. As the Supreme Court appears poised to return abortion regulation to the states, recent experience in Texas illustrates that medical care for miscarriages and dangerous ectopic pregnancies would also be threatened if restrictions become more widespread. The hospital where she works pays me to have these conversations with patients, but theres not necessarily any guarantee they would have my back should someone decide to list my name on a lawsuit, she said. Because the alternative was hell.". Hall declined those services. But then an overwhelming sense of calm washed over her. In retrospect, Elizabeth says their initial joy felt a little naive: "If it was so easy for us to get pregnant, then to us it was almost like a sign that this pregnancy was going to be easy for us.". Doctors and experts also worry that patients with pregnancy complications may be too afraid of being accused of inducing an abortion to seek care. In September, the justices turned down an emergency request to block the law. Later in pregnancy, doctors can try to delay delivery to give the fetus more time to develop, while also warding off infection or other maternal complications such as hemorrhage. In this case, the woman had the means to travel, and she obtained an abortion in another state, an option unavailable to many low-income and working class women. "He and I kept telling each other 'What is the whole point of the Hippocratic oath to do no harm?'" SB 8, which was signed into law by Texas Gov. We usually have our moms register for delivery at this point. One Texas law passed last year lists several medications as abortion-inducing drugs and largely bars their use for abortion after the seventh week of pregnancy. ), hhs may not enforce the following interpretations contained in the july 11, 2022, cms guidance (and the corresponding letter sent the same day by hhs secretary becerra): (1) hhs may not enforce the guidance and letter's interpretation that texas abortion laws are preempted by emtala; and (2) hhs may . Eventually, she found a clinic near Seattle that provides specialty care for patients who have decided to terminate due to lethal fetal abnormalities. Fetuses who do survive a premature delivery can die soon after birth, or, if they survive, may experience major problems with their lungs, or suffer strokes, blindness, cerebral palsy or other disabilities and illnesses. Confusion around the laws has caused issues for patients outside of emergencies. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Here's what current Texas abortion laws say, plus birth control info Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 245. But I need you to tell me the truth, because I don't think all the positive things that they're telling me are real. Post-Roe v. Wade, abortion bans may keep doctors from providing timely, necessary care. 1, eff. As Elizabeth recalled hearing, it was one particular doctor who had argued her case: "They found a doctor from East Texas who spoke up and was so patient forward, so patient advocating, that he said 'This is ridiculous.'". . Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 171. She had the proof. In fact, no abortion law in any state in America prevents lifesaving treatment for women with ectopic pregnancies and other life-threatening conditions . Dr. John Thoppil, president of the Texas Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, said doctors usually note a diagnosis when prescribing medicines, and prescription rejections dont appear to be widespread. other than an abortion performed due to a medical emergency as defined by Section 171.002, Health and Safety Code]. I'm actually headed home right now because I have to await my dead baby's delivery.' John Seago, legislative director for Texas Right to Life, described this type of hesitation as "an awful misunderstanding of the law." "This poor woman had no idea what she was telling me. The associations say these women should be given the option of termination if they become pregnant. With abortion laws in Texas about to change, The Dallas Morning News is answering your questions about what to expect without the protections established in Roe vs . "The pharmacy has said, 'We don't know whether or not you might be using this medication for the purposes of abortion,'" she said. I knew something was wrong.. Julia Robinson for NPR Amplify your impact and donate now. There was an infection, and she did need treatment. Many of the patients that we see in my practice already have to drive so far away to get basic prenatal care, Cheng said. In addition, he said, other Texas laws and the Roe v. Wade decision provide an exception to permit abortion if a pregnant person's life is in danger. About 10% to 20% of confirmed pregnancies end in miscarriages, but estimates are as high as 30% to 50% for all pregnancies, including those in which a person may not know of the pregnancy. Instead, the patient may choose medication or a surgical evacuation procedure, which Briggs said may prove necessary anyway to avoid a patient becoming septic if some of the tissue remains in the uterus. Your donation keeps our trusted reporting free and accessible for all Texans and during a legislative session when lawmakers are set to tackle issues from school choice for K-12 students to school safety improvements to changes in property taxes, its critical that Texans know what lawmakers decisions mean for their futures. Recently passed laws make abortion illegal after about six weeks into a pregnancy. hide caption. "We shouldn't have been celebrating," Elizabeth says. Miscarriage It's an emotional and legal dilemma that potentially faces not just obstetricians and midwives, but also family physicians, emergency physicians, pharmacists, and anyone else who might become involved with pregnancy care. Idaho, Tennessee and Texas will implement abortion bans in 30 days, according to the text of the laws. The bill . A few weeks after Texas adopted the most restrictive abortion law in the nation, Dr. Andrea Palmer delivered terrible news to a Fort Worth patient who was . And she says 'Yes. But when membranes rupture earlier in pregnancy, particularly before 24 weeks, the chance of a fetus surviving plummets. A doctor sat down and told her: "There's very little amniotic fluid left. And surprisingly, both of their families sent money to help pay for the trip, despite their anti-abortion sentiments. Still, states like Missouri could put this pro-abortion talking point to rest by protecting treatment of ectopic pregnancy explicitly in the law. Either way, she saw nothing ahead but fear and grief prolonged, delayed, amplified. Yet under the new law, Dr. Thoppil felt he could not counsel her on terminating the pregnancy. In the medical profession, doctors will continue to grapple with the new legal restrictions, and the resultant dilemmas in obstetrical care, says Dr. Peaceman. She and her husband immediately jumped into planning mode, scheduling an appointment at one of the only OB-GYN practices in town. If you do something to prevent that, you might be in fact performing an illegal abortion.. When she first saw that positive pregnancy test, she panicked even at 27, she said, her first reaction was that of a 15-year-old, worried about telling her parents. An oncologist urged the woman to start treatment immediately, but the chemotherapy regimen would have been toxic to the fetus. But the incentives are all very strong for those providers to err on the side of not providing care.. A recently scanned monitor shows a patients ultrasound at the Family Birth Center at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan, in February 2022. "I can tell that she's been beat down, because she has been trying to fight for me all day, advocating on my behalf," Elizabeth says. hide caption. An ectopic pregnancy is 100% fatal if . "Being pregnant in a state like Texas is a dangerous . Recently passed laws make abortion illegal after about six weeks into a pregnancy. "partial-birth" abortions, medical abortions, the stage of a pregnancy at which an abortion can be performed, and informed consent related to abortions. A doctor hugs a patient at an abortion clinic in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, on 13 January 2023. KHN (Kaiser Health News) is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues. It includes laws about. Texas has a trigger law on the books that will outlaw abortion almost universally beginning 30 days after the Supreme Court . Seek help right away for signs of ectopic pregnancy your doctor can talk you through next steps. Since pharmacists rotate through that Walmart, Liedtke decided to send those prescriptions to other pharmacies rather than attempt to sort out the misunderstanding anew each time. How Every State Pro-Life Law Handles Ectopic Pregnancy and Miscarriage Texas police separate anti-abortion protestors from abortion supporters during the nationwide Women's March in Austin, Texas . ", State abortion laws are complicating other types of obstetric care. Double your gift when you give by 6 p.m. Thursday. Under the current text, any doctor who removes an ectopic pregnancy that is not actively causing the patient to bleed to death faces dire consequences. After one conversation, the doctor returned to her bedside. Notably, under Texas' law, at least one patient was told to wait until her ectopic pregnancy ruptured her fallopian tubewhich would have put her at immediate risk of death from hemorrhage . Their daughter, as expected, was stillborn. They stood up in the middle of the ER and embraced. But he did not address the question of lethal fetal anomalies, which are fatal for the fetus during pregnancy or shortly after birth. An attendee holds her child during A Texas Rally for Abortion Rights at Discovery Green in Houston, Texas, on May 7. I need you to give me the facts.'". She was due just a few days before Christmas. "Ectopic pregnancies can kill people," said Brown, a district chair for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, representing Texas. Federal law typically trumps state laws, but it will now be up to courts to decide whether that will be the case in this instance. That's not a good thing. SHORT TITLE. One persons emergency may not be another persons emergency, said Dr. Robert Carpenter Jr., an obstetrician in Houston. But when she called, they told her that nausea and vomiting weren't among the symptoms they were looking for. On September 1, 2021, Texas Senate Bill 8 (SB 8) went into effect, banning virtually all abortions and medical counseling and support related to abortion after six weeks. In Texas, a 2021 law made it easier to sue anyone who helps a person get an abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy. You're not going to tell me that what I'm experiencing isn't real, again.". Santa Teresa, new Mexico, on may 7 Texas is a dangerous to tell that! 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