(C) Daily Kos
This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered.
 . . . . . . . . . .



Terrified Florida doctors ignore 'exceptions,' force women to carry fatally disabled fetuses to term [1]

['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags']

Date: 2023-02-20  

As reported by Frances Stead Sellers, writing for the Washington Post, one pregnant couple recently came face to face with Florida’s newest abortion prohibition, its real purpose couched in benevolent-sounding terms of “Reducing Fetal and Infant Mortality.” As Sellers reports, the real-world outcome of this anti-abortion legislation, passed by an unassailable, zealous Republican majority in Florida’s legislature and quickly signed into law by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, proved to be significantly different than expected for one family subjected to its blunt and arbitrary provisions:

Nobody expected things to happen the way they did when halfway through their planned and seemingly healthy pregnancy, a routine ultrasound revealed the fetus had devastating abnormalities, pitching the dazed couple into the uncharted landscape of Florida’s new abortion law. Deborah and Lee Dorbert say the most painful decision of their lives was not honored by the physicians they trust. Even though medical experts expect their baby to survive only 20 minutes to a couple of hours, the Dorberts say their doctors told them that because of the new legislation, they could not terminate the pregnancy.

The Dorberts’ own physicians --an obstetrician and a “maternal fetal medicine specialist” — were unanimous about one thing: the child being carried by Deborah Dorbert would not survive much more than 20 minutes outside the womb. As Sellers reports, it had a condition “long considered lethal,” that is, considered “lethal” by the entire medical community well before six medically illiterate fanatics on the United States Supreme Court gave implicit permission for like-minded Republicans eager to please their constituents, to do their worst. The Florida law provides a narrow exception allowing the termination of pregnancy in cases where two doctors certify that the fetus has a” fetal abnormality.” That such a condition existed in the fetus being carried by Deborah Dorbert was beyond any reasonable dispute.

Neither of the Dorberts’ doctors would respond to the Post’s requests for comment as to why they were unwilling to make such a certification, nor would the Lakeland Regional Health hospital system that employs them. Their reasoning, if unstated, is obvious. Should they be found in violation of Florida’s new law they face penalties including losing their license to practice medicine, and the potential of being imprisoned for five years. Consequently, doctors faced with such a moral quandary typically err, as Autumn Katz, the interim director for the Center for Reproductive Rights and quoted in Sellers’ article laconically puts it: ‘on the side of questioning whether the conditions are fully met.’ Because doctors -- despite the aspirational Hippocratic oath they aspire to — are also normal, fearful human beings.

Not that it matters (because it doesn’t), the Dorberts really wanted a baby in this circumstance. Deborah Dorbert followed all the traditional rules: Eating properly, keeping her appointments and taking the ultrasounds and blood tests that any family that has produced one or more children knows by heart.

But just like for too many expectant couples, it just didn’t work out for the Dorberts. They were advised that the fetus Deborah was carrying had a serious problem. As Sellers notes, in medical-speak, they were advised at 23 weeks that “The kidneys were not developing properly, failing to produce the liquid that protects the fetus and promotes the development of vital organs.” Other notable abnormalities included a lack of appropriate amniotic fluid. The doctors’ considered conclusion was that their child would not survive more than 20 minutes after being born. This conclusion was solidified when it was determined that the fetus had no kidneys whatsoever. As Sellers notes, three ultrasounds confirmed this, “and the specialist told them that the condition was incompatible with life.”

It’s called Potter’s syndrome. It’s rare, and it’s fatal. In fact, as Sellers reports, it’s “doubly lethal.” There are no treatment options.

At this point you might spare a moment to imagine what this couple is experiencing. People, friends, see her “baby bump” and express their cheery, heartfelt, wishes and approval. Consider the sheer horror of having to acknowledge such sentiments with the truth. The Dorberts, quite sensibly, elected to terminate Deborah’s pregnancy. But they were told by their doctors that under the “new law,” they could not, even though termination was a possible option.

As Sellers reports:

The doctor made his determination after having “legal/administration look at the new law and the way it’s written,” the coordinator reiterated to Deborah in a recent text message she shared with The Post. “It’s horribly written,” the text continued.

It was “horribly written” because it was written by Republican legislators with no medical training whatsoever, no knowledge, no thought given to the real-world consequences of what they were doing. Their only imperative was to insert a “fig-leaf” provision lending credence to their decision to collectively condemn the termination of all pregnancies, based on what boils down, in essence, to their electoral prospects. And the Dorberts, like many pregnant people facing Florida’s “unique” new laws, had no real economic prospects of leaving the state to secure the termination of this pregnancy, a decision that would have been in their best interests. According to Sellers’ report, the family was also concerned about the “potential legal repercussions.”

One of the Florida law’s Republican sponsors, former state senator Kelli Stargell, helpfully notes that “the court system” could decide such an issue in cases like the Dorberts’. But like most people, the Dorberts have decided they can’t — and probably don’t have enough time — to rely on the “court system.” They’re still resigned to having their child, who doctors have effectively told them they must carry to term. And Deborah Dorbert will have to live with that edict, imposed on her by people with not the slightest interest in her personal situation, or the fatal condition that affects the fetus she is carrying.

Put simply, thanks to the Republicans in the Florida legislature, she has to go through the next few months knowing that her child, when born, will almost certainly die.

[END]
---
[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/2/20/2153862/-Terrified-Florida-doctors-ignore-exceptions-force-women-to-carry-fatally-disabled-fetuses-to-term

Published and (C) by Daily Kos
Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified.

via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/