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Jan 20, 2025
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Denied an abortion, female tells senators she 'almost passed away on their watch'


Denied an abortion, female tells senators she 'almost passed away on their watch'

By Jacqueline Howard and Tierney Sneed|CNN


A female who is taking legal action against the state of Texas after being denied an abortion told legislators Wednesday that not getting abortion care damaged her mental health and may avoid her from having kids in the future.

Addressing her senators, Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, Amanda Zurawski said her "horrific" experience was a result of policies they support. "I nearly passed away on their watch," she stated.

" We've heard a lot today about the psychological trauma and the negative harmful effects on a person's mental wellness after they have an abortion, apparently, and I'm curious why that's not appropriate for me too," Zurawski stated in the hearing of the US Senate Committee on the Judiciary on the effect of the Supreme Court's reversal of Roe v. Wade.

" Because I wasn't allowed to have an abortion and the injury and the PTSD and the depression that I have actually dealt with in the 8 months considering that this happened to me is incapacitating," she said. "On top of that, I am still struggling to have kids."

Zurawski formerly told CNN she was rejected abortion care after she had pregnancy issues. Eighteen weeks into her pregnancy, Zurawski's water broke, which put her at high threat for a dangerous infection.

Zurawski told lawmakers Wednesday that she got an emergency abortion only after her condition aggravated and she went into septic shock - - adding that she may have been among the first clients impacted in the state of Texas after Roe was reversed, eliminating the federal right to an abortion.

" I wanted to resolve my senators Cruz and Cornyn, neither of whom sadly remain in the space today, however I would like for them to understand that what occurred to me I believe many people in this space would concur was dreadful. But it's a direct result of the policies that they support," Zurawski stated. "I almost passed away on their watch, and additionally, as a result of what took place to me, I may have been robbed of the opportunity to have kids in the future."

Zurawski is one of five ladies suing the state of Texas over its limiting abortion laws, declaring they experienced pain and suffering because they were denied abortion care when they faced emergency situation issues in their pregnancies. The lawsuit was submitted in March by the nonprofit Center for Reproductive Rights.

Texas at center of abortion battle


Texas, which has perhaps the most aggressive abortion constraints in the nation, has actually been the site of a number of legal fights over abortion considering that prior to the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade last June.

The language in Texas' abortion laws is "incredibly unclear, and it leaves doctors facing what they can and can not do, what health care they can and can not provide," Zurawski said, bristling at the implication that her physicians were at fault for misinterpreting the state's abortion bans. "And if they make the wrong the decision, they confront 99 years in prison and/or losing their license."

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, the top Republican on the committee, asked GOP witness Dr. Ingrid Skop, an obstetrician-gynecologist in Texas and vice president and director of medical affairs for the anti-abortion Charlotte Lozier Institute, to weigh in on what happened to Zurawksi.

" I am so sorry at your loss," Skop said to Zurawski.

" And I am so sorry that your medical professionals misconstrued Texas law," Skop said. "Every single law permits an exemption for a doctor to use their reasonable medical judgment to determine when to intervene in a medical emergency situation, which is usually specified as a hazard to the life of the mom or permanent irreversible damage to an organ or an organ system."

Skop said that even before the Supreme Court reversed Roe, physicians were aware of how to evaluate medical emergencies where abortions must be offered and that the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology has in location guidance instructing suppliers to offer abortions or shipment for clients in Zurawski's scenario, acknowledging that the threat of infection is high, which can end up being lethal sepsis.

" Either one ought to have been offered and might have been used to Amanda," Skop said.

Cornyn, a Texas Republican who rests on the committee, later on suggested that a medical malpractice lawsuit versus her physicians is the legal route Zurawski must consider.

Later in the hearing, Zurawski stated she wished to respond to comments from Skop and Cornyn.

" Dr. Skop is not my doctor. She has actually never ever been my doctor. She has never treated me. She has not seen my medical records," Zurawski said.

" Quite frankly, my doctor and my group of health care professionals that I saw throughout three days, while I was consistently turned away from health care access, made the decision to not provide an abortion because that's what they felt they had to do under Texas' law," Zurawski said. "And that will continue to happen and it is continuing to occur, and it's not a result of misconception. It's the result of confusion and the confusion is since the way the law is written."

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Elwood Hill
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Elwood Hill

Elwood Hill is an award-winning journalist with more than 18 years' of experience in the industry. Throughout his career, John has worked on a variety of different stories and assignments including national politics, local sports, and international business news. Elwood graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in journalism and immediately began working for Breaking Now News as lead journalist.

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