A Republican representative who says she almost died due to her state’s abortion ban has said ‘fearmongering’ caused delayed treatment.
Representative Kat Cammack, 37, almost died last year due to an ectopic pregnancy, and said staff at the hospital were nervous to treat her for fear of criminal prosecution.
Cammack went to the hospital on May 31 last year, where it was found she had a cornual ectopic pregnancy, meaning her embryo had implanted where the fallopian tube meets the uterus.
The doctor told Cammack: ‘If this ruptures, it will kill you,’ but she decided against surgery.
The situation was complicated by the fact that Florida’s six-week abortion ban had come into effect on May 1 last year, meaning medical staff were hesitant to give her a shot of methotrexate, which was needed to end her pregnancy and save Cammack’s life.
Even though Cammack was only five weeks along, fear of prosecution from authorities against the medics was so palpable that she had to argue her case for treatment.
After finally receiving treatment, Cammack has slammed her experience, but blamed abortion rights advocates, who she claims made the hospital afraid of giving her drugs, even when it was legal to do so.
Florida’s abortion ban punishes those who violate it with five years in prison, loss of medical licenses and fines of up to $5,000.
Even though the ban did not specify prosecution for treating ectopic pregnancies, the threat of legal action against medical staff has scared many in the health field.
Cammack, who is now pregnant again, said: ‘It was absolute fearmongering at its worst.
‘There will be some comments like, ‘Well, thank God we have abortion services,’ even though what I went through wasn’t an abortion,’ she added.
The politician has prevoiusly said she is pro-life, opposing abortion in all cases except rape, incest, or when the mother’s life is at risk.
‘I would stand with any woman – Republican or Democrat – and fight for them to be able to get care in a situation where they are experiencing a miscarriage and an ectopic pregnancy,’ she said.
‘We have turned the conversation about women’s healthcare into two camps: pink hats and pink ribbons. It’s either breast cancer or abortion.’
What is an ectopic pregnancy?
An ectopic pregnancy is a fairly common (1 in 80 pregnancies are affected) but potentially life-threatening condition, which means an out-of-place pregnancy.
It happens when a fertilised egg implants outside the womb, most often in the Fallopian tube. It is not possible to move an ectopic pregnancy into the womb to develop normally.
As the pregnancy continues to grow, it can damage the Fallopian tube or cause it to burst, resulting in internal bleeding and extreme pain.
In 2019, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed a bill saying medics need to re-implant ectopic pregnancies, or face murder charges. Re-implanting the embryos in this case is not possible.
The crackdown on reproductive rights in the US in recent years has left many fearful of seeking medical care, for fear of prosecution.
Earlier this month, another US state announced that women who suffer a miscarriage could be investigated under new anti-abortion laws.
West Virginia already has a full abortion ban in effect – illegal in all cases except rape or incest, fatal abnormalities and when the mother’s life is at risk – but now, those who miscarry could face consequences.
Which states can prosecute for miscarriages?
Several states have prosecuted women for miscarriages or stillbirths.
They include: South Carolina, Georgia, Arkansas, Texas, California, Mississippi, and Ohio. It appears West Virginia has joined the ranks as well.
Though California has since passed laws banning criminal charges and investigations of pregnancy loss, it previously jailed two women for stillbirths.
After the Supreme Court decided to overturn Roe v Wade in 2022, abortion access in the United States has significantly worsened.
A Texas woman was forced to carry her dead fetus in her womb for two weeks after it was discovered she had miscarried.
Stell’s situation went from bad to worse when she asked her doctor to perform a standard surgery to remove the fetal remains, and her doctor refused.
In Georgia, a pregnant woman was kept alive, despite being brain-dead, to carry her baby to term.
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