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AP Investigation: ERs Turn Away or Neglect Pregnant Women in Medical Distress

In February, emergency room doctors in Texas handed a bleeding Kyleigh Thornton a pamphlet on miscarriage and told her to “let nature take its course” before discharging her without treatment for her ectopic pregnancy. When the 25-year-old returned three days later, still bleeding, doctors finally agreed to give her an injection to end the pregnancy. It was too late. The growing fertilized egg had ruptured Thurman’s fallopian tube, destroying part of her reproductive system.


More than 100 pregnant women in medical distress who sought help from emergency rooms were turned away or negligently treated since 2022, an Associated Press analysis of federal hospital investigations found. Last week, the Center for Reproductive Rights filed a complaint on behalf of Kyleigh Thornton, asking the government to investigate whether the hospital violated federal law when staff failed to treat her initially. The Biden administration says hospitals must offer abortions when needed to save a woman’s life, despite state bans enacted after the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion more than two years ago. Texas is challenging that guidance and, earlier this summer, the Supreme Court declined to resolve the issue.

 

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A daily report co-sponsored by Arizona State University, Criminal Justice Journalists, and the National Criminal Justice Association

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