Patients, Georgia OBGYN testify at U.S. Senate Hearing that the State’s abortion ban is forcing Georgia women to continue high-risk and nonviable pregnancies
In July, OB-GYN doctors testified that Georgia’s abortion ban is risking the lives of pregnant women in the state
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Atlanta, Ga. — The State’s abortion ban is forcing Georgia women to continue high-risk and nonviable pregnancies, two Georgia women and an OGBYN doctor testified at a U.S. Senate hearing today in Atlanta.
Today, Georgia women and an OB-GYN testified before U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff’s Human Rights Subcommittee in Atlanta that Georgia’s 6-week abortion ban is forcing Georgia women to continue high-risk and nonviable pregnancies, posing risks to their health and human rights.
Ms. Mackenzie Kulik from Atlanta testified that she developed significant complications in her second trimester of pregnancy and that her doctor told her “off the record” that she had no chance of delivering a healthy baby and continuing her pregnancy would put her at risk of infection, but Kulik testified that her case “did not qualify for an exemption under Georgia’s abortion law,” so she had to travel out of state for “medically necessary care.”
“My doctor turned to me and said that the next conversation we were about to have was completely ‘off the record.’ That it would not be in my visit notes, and I was not allowed to send follow up questions. Then, my doctor turned to me and told me that our baby was not going to make it, and that if we did not terminate soon the baby would either die in utero, she would die shortly after being born, or I was likely to develop an infection,” Kulik testified [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP at 7:48]. “It was heartbreaking to hear this. Accepting that we were never going to meet or hold our baby girl. It was the thing I feared the most.”
“I was shocked that despite the fact that my baby was not going to make it, and continuing the pregnancy posed a risk to my health, my case apparently did not qualify for an exemption under Georgia’s abortion law. The only way I could get the medically necessary care was to travel to a different state,” Kulik continued [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP at 08:49].
“If I had not been able to travel out of state, I would have been forced to carry a non-viable pregnancy until the baby died in utero. Or I would have developed an infection that threatened my health enough to qualify for an intervention. Or I would have had to deliver a baby only to watch her suffer. Her underdeveloped lungs would never have the chance to take a breath of air on their own,” Kulik testified [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 10:40].
Ms. Yasmein Ziyad from Morrow testified that she sought an abortion when she learned she was miscarrying; however, even though her pregnancy was not viable, she testified she was denied an abortion because her doctor feared losing his license or being prosecuted if he performed the procedure.
“At my follow-up appointment, which would have me at eight weeks, the doctor confirmed the miscarriage. I asked again about the D&C, and he spoke around the topic, then stated ‘These laws. I don’t want to lose my license or be arrested,’” Ziyad testified [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 16:52].
“A week later, I started to experience severe cramping and pains. A few days after that, I began to bleed. I was experiencing severe pain as the cramps were strong enough to stop me from doing anything,” Ziyad continued [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 18:11].
“I didn’t have to go through this. These laws created so much fear and confusion that I couldn’t get the care I needed, that would have spared me so much pain and suffering. As a result of what I went through, we have given up on hopes of ever being pregnant again,” Ziyad testified [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 20:28].
Dr. Carrie Cwiak, an OBGYN in Atlanta, testified that her patients experience complications like sepsis and hemorrhage because their doctors were not able to perform medically necessary abortions under Georgia’s ban.
“Physicians, myself included, have seen patients in the ICU, with sepsis, with renal failure, needing tube feeds, with hemorrhage, needing blood transfusions or a hysterectomy, who would not have been in those positions if we had been able to offer them care to avoid further harm,” Dr. Cwiak testified [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 24:55].
“Physicians, hospitals, and clinics work to understand the ban’s language to determine whether they can provide the standard of care within the confines of the law. Medical care is put on hold as we search for legal clarity. As a result, patients may be denied timely, effective care,” Dr. Cwiak said [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 24:35].
“Make no mistake. This restrictive ban has increased maternal mortality and poor health outcomes. In Georgia and other restrictive states, we have learned of case after case of pregnant women being turned away or experiencing delays in their care,” Dr. Cwiak testified [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 23:26].
Dr. Cwiak later testified that Georgia’s abortion ban “itself has a chilling effect.” [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 48:40].
“It is critically important that the public hear directly from health care providers and from women who have been denied basic health care in the State of Georgia as a result of our State’s abortion ban,” Sen. Ossoff said in his closing statement [DOWNLOAD VIDEO CLIP HERE at 1:14:32]. “I am grateful to each of you for sharing your experiences with us today and your expertise. As we heard from Dr. Cwiak, these brave women who testified here today are not alone. This abortion ban is causing needless health complications for women across the state, and as we have heard today, forcing women with high-risk or nonviable pregnancies either to continue those pregnancies or to leave the state for health care.”
In July, Sen. Ossoff heard testimony from Georgia OB-GYNs who warned Georgia’s abortion ban is risking the lives of pregnant women in Georgia.
OB-GYN doctors testified before U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff’s Human Rights Subcommittee that women in Georgia are being denied care during miscarriages and gone into sepsis because of Georgian’s abortion ban, which they testified has hindered OGBYNs’ ability to do their jobs and could put them at risk of prosecution.
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