In 2003, Bush signed a partial birth abortion ban, prohibiting doctors from killing a partially delivered fetus—including dilation and evacuation (D&E).
50 YEARS OF Ms.: THE BEST OF THE PATHFINDING MAGAZINE THAT IGNITED A REVOLUTION. and was nominated for an award from the American Society of Magazine Editors. Fifteen years later, 75 percent of Americans still think the decision whether or not a person should have an abortion “should be left to the woman and her doctor,” according to a recent
I was 19 weeks pregnant, strong, fit and happy, imagining our fourth child, the newest member of our family. He would have dark hair and bright eyes. He’d be intelligent and strong—really strong, judging by his early kicks.
My doctor turned around and faced me. She told me that because dilation and evacuation is rarely offered in my community, I could opt instead to chemically induce labor over several days and then deliver the little body at my local maternity ward.I’d been through labor and delivery three times before, with great joy as well as pain, and the notion of going through that profound experience only to deliver a dead fetus was horrifying.
I’m a healthy person. I run, swim and bike. I’m 37 years old and optimistic. Good things happen to me. I didn’t want to rule out having more kids, but I did want to know what went wrong before I tried again.“I can’t do these myself,” said my doctor. “I trained at a Catholic hospital.” I began calling labor and delivery units at the top five medical centers in my area. I told them I had been 19 weeks along. The baby is dead. I’m bleeding, I said. I’m scheduled for D&E in a few days. If I come in right now, what could you do for me, I asked.
More than 66,000 women each year in the U.S. undergo an abortion at some point between 13 and 20 weeks.Although there are some new, early diagnostic tests available, the most common prenatal screening for neural tube defects or Down syndrome is done around the 16th week of pregnancy. When problems are found—sometimes life-threatening problems—pregnant women face the same limited options that I did.
The next few days were a blur of lumpy motel beds, telephone calls to doctors, cramps. The pre-examination for my D&E finally arrived. First, the hospital required me to sign a legal form consenting to terminate the pregnancy. Then they explained I could, at no cost, have the remains incinerated by the hospital pathology department as medical waste, or for a fee have them taken to a funeral home for burial or cremation.