TEXAS, USA — Two Texas women are taking their concerns to a national level after they say they were denied abortions while dealing with life-threatening tubal ectopic pregnancies.
With the help of counsel from the Center for Reproductive Rights, Kyleigh Thurman and Kelsie Norris-De La Cruz have filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Thurman claims she was repeatedly denied necessary medical assistance at Ascension Seton Williamson Hospital in Round Rock, while Norris-De La Cruz says the same happened to her at Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital in Arlington.
Both women suffered ectopic pregnancies, which is when a fertilized egg grows outside of a uterus. In many instances, this can cause bleeding and rupturing of a fallopian tube. According to the National Library of Medicine, ectopic pregnancies are the main cause of death in the first trimester.
Both Thurman and Norris De-La Cruz say they suffered a ruptured fallopian tube but that they were discharged by the hospitals without treatment for their conditions.
"Despite the fact that my life was clearly in danger, the hospital told me that they could not help me," Norris-De La Cruz said. "I ended up losing half of my fertility and if I was made to wait any longer, it's very likely I would have died."
Thurman and Norris-De La Cruz believe the hospitals' decision to deny them abortions was a direct violation of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA.
What is EMTALA?
This federal law requires emergency rooms that accept Medicare funding to offer a medical exam to any patient that shows up at their facility. Emergency rooms are also required to stabilize patients if they have a medical emergency before discharging or transferring them.
Under EMLATA, hospitals can lose Medicare funding or be charged extra fines for avoiding patient services. However, at the same time, by performing abortions, Texas doctors can face prison time, fines of $100,000 or more and even a removal of their license.
Texas has a statewide abortion ban, but in July, the Biden administration told emergency room doctors that they must perform emergency abortions when necessary to save a pregnant person's health, following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that failed to settle a dispute over whether state abortion bans override EMLATA.
Texas has blocked emergency abortions under EMTALA since 2022 after the state sued the HHS, causing additional complications.
KVUE reached out to Ascension about Thurman's complaint. The hospital sent the following statement:
"While we cannot speak to the specifics of the specifics of this case, Ascension is committed to providing high-quality care to all who seek our services."
Other legal battles over Texas' abortion laws
This isn't the first time Texas women have fought back against the state's abortion laws.
Twenty women joined a lawsuit against the state after they said the state's near-total abortion laws stopped them from getting medical care for their complicated pregnancies.
Meanwhile, in late July, a federal judge ruled that a Texas woman who was jailed and charged with murder after self-managing an abortion in 2022 can move forward with her lawsuit against the local sheriff and prosecutors.