An Arizona newlywed was left devastated after Arizona abortion laws forced her to wait to abort her baby and led to traumatic emergency surgery.
Ashley Ortiz of Phoenix was newly and happily married when she found out in July that she and her husband were expecting a baby.
“We found out we were having a boy and everything seemed great in terms of all the tests,” Ortiz said. Arizona’s family.
However, at her 20-week ultrasound, Ortiz received the devastating news that her pregnancy was not viable and she was already in premature labor.
Ortiz said she felt “completely disappointed” and added that she was “really excited to meet” her son.
An Arizona newlywed was devastated after Arizona abortion laws forced her to wait to abort her baby and she ended up needing traumatic surgery.
Ashley Ortiz of Phoenix was newly and happily married when she found out in July that she and her husband were expecting a baby.
She was admitted to the hospital and told her fetus had no chance of surviving, but doctors told her it was illegal to give her medications to induce labor due to Arizona’s controversial ban on abortion at 15 weeks.
Tragically, Ortiz had nothing to do but wait until she became seriously ill or for the baby’s heart to stop.
“It’s very dangerous for people to have to go through that; it’s also heartbreaking for the person, for me and my husband,” the heartbroken wife said.
On Christmas Eve, the fetus’s heart stopped. Ortiz was given medication and she gave birth to him.
Another tragedy struck when complications occurred due to delayed care during childbirth and Ortiz was forced to undergo emergency surgery.
“It was brutal…physically and emotionally,” he said.
Due to blood clotting and trauma, the surgical procedure took three times longer than usual.
She is still processing the pain of losing her baby, which was only amplified by the fact that the intense trauma she went through was preventable.
Ortiz considers herself lucky: There are many other women who have been in similar situations due to Arizona’s harsh abortion laws who had different outcomes.
Abortion laws in Arizona have been in limbo since
The state Legislature on Wednesday approved repealing a long-dormant ban on nearly all abortions, sending the bill to Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, who is expected to sign it.
However, at her 20-week ultrasound, Ortiz received the devastating news that her pregnancy was not viable and she was already in premature labor.
She was admitted to the hospital and told her fetus had no chance of surviving, but doctors told her it was illegal to give her medications to induce labor due to Arizona’s controversial ban on abortion at 15 weeks.
“It’s very dangerous for people to have to go through that; it’s also heartbreaking for the person, for me and my husband,” the heartbroken wife said.
Two Republicans joined Democrats in the Senate in voting 16-14 to repeal a Civil War-era abortion ban that the state’s highest court recently allowed to take effect. AP reported.
The ban on all abortions, which makes no exceptions for survivors of rape or incest and only allows procedures performed to save a patient’s life, would remain in effect until the fall.
Hobbs said in a statement that he hopes to quickly sign the repeal, with a ceremony scheduled for Thursday.
“Arizona women should not have to live in a state where politicians make decisions that should be between a woman and her doctor,” Hobbs said. “While this repeal is essential to protecting women’s lives, it is just the beginning of our fight to protect reproductive health care.”
“Across the country, women are living in a state of chaos and cruelty caused by Donald Trump,” Vice President Kamala Harris said in a statement Wednesday.
“While Arizona Democrats have worked to clean up the devastating mess created by Trump and his extremist allies, the state’s existing ban, with no exception for rape or incest, remains in effect.”
If the repeal bill is signed, a 2022 statute banning the procedure after 15 weeks of pregnancy would become the current abortion law in Arizona.
Still, there would likely be a period in which almost all abortions would be banned, because the repeal will not take effect until 90 days after the end of the legislative session, probably in June or July.
Hours after the vote, efforts were already underway to prevent the long-standing abortion ban from taking effect before the repeal became a reality.