La. lawmaker brings clarity to abortion confusion

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - There seems to have been some confusion around Louisiana’s abortion laws.

A story on Monday, Aug. 15, featured a pregnant woman who was denied an abortion even after learning about her baby’s fatal diagnosis. Nancy Davis said she was denied an abortion at Woman’s Hospital after learning her child was diagnosed with Acrania, a rare and fatal condition where the baby’s skull fails to form properly and makes life outside the womb virtually impossible.

RELATED: Mother claims she was denied an abortion despite baby’s condition

The Louisiana lawmaker who wrote the state’s strict abortion law said it’s being misunderstood.

“This woman is not seeking an abortion,” said state Sen. Katrina Jackson, D-Monroe. “This woman is seeking a medical procedure for a pregnancy that is not viable outside of the womb.”

Jackson added there are actually many exceptions to the state’s abortion law.

On the Department of Health’s list of 26 exclusive exceptions, Davis’ baby’s condition was not listed by name. However, Jackson said the last exception should have covered her.

“Number 26 is a catch-all list of what two physicians consider to be a medically futile pregnancy,” Sen. Jackson added.

Sen. Jackson wants to get everyone together, medical providers, the Department of Health and the Attorney General’s Office so they can see what needs to be clarified.

“Some seminars via Zoom respecting the medical provider’s time are hosted to clear up this issue forward. Where legislation is needed to clear it up, then it will happen. I spent countless hours clearing this up but I would say that I did not have a problem with WAFB’s story, I think you accurately reported what the provider told you. That’s going to change probably in the next 24 to 48 hours because LDH and the Attorney General’s Office are working right now to clear that up,” Sen. Jackson explained.

On Monday, Nancy was in a race against time to make an unthinkable decision. Now she can breathe a sigh of relief that she’ll be to make that decision safely here at home.

Because of patient confidentiality laws, a spokesperson with woman’s hospital said they cannot comment.

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