An Idaho couple has sued a New Mexico Planned Parenthood for wrongful birth. Yes, you read that correctly. Just as a person would sue for a wrongful, or unwanted, death, this Boise couple is suing for a wrongful, unwanted birth. The husband and wife duo drove to Albuquerque to receive a medication abortion, claiming that they couldn’t have it done in Idaho due to the mandatory waiting period.
The pregnant woman received an oral medication that was supposed to successfully rid her of the healthy fetus with two separate pills, each taken 24 hours apart. She took the first pill at the clinic and drove back to Boise with her husband. The next day she went to a local emergency room with complaints of severe nausea and dizziness. To the couple’s dismay, the doctors informed them that the fetus was still perfectly healthy. When they called the Albuquerque Planned Parenthood office, she was instructed to take the second pill as prescribed. Even after doing so, she was on track to have a baby.
She ended up giving birth one month early to a son who was apparently jaundiced and ill. She is suing Planned Parenthood for medical negligence due to an unwanted pregnancy and for the illness of her unwanted, born son.
This is not a surprising or new case. People have sued for wrongful or negligent abortions before. Rather than handling them as claims for or against abortion, they have the rights to be handled as medical malpractice and/or medical negligence cases. Planned Parenthood in particular has had many lawsuits brought against them for improper or unsuccessful procedures, and misdiagnoses.
One thing about this case that doesn’t add up is that the couple supposedly went to New Mexico to seek an abortion that would not have been allowed in Idaho due to the waiting period. The couple claimed that Idaho’s waiting period was too long and would allow the fetus to further develop. However, the waiting period in Idaho is only 24 hours. The fetus would not have matured enough in a 24-hour time frame to make or break a decision by Idaho physicians. Other experts that are taking a look at this case also pose the question as to why the couple chose New Mexico out of all of their surrounding states. They drove 700 miles for a procedure that could have very well taken place in a nearer facility.
The case has not yet reached a final solution.
If you have experienced a medical malpractice or medical negligence case in the Albuquerque, New Mexico or Midland, Texas areas, contact Buckingham & Vega Law Firm to strongly represent you. We have dealt with a wide range of cases and will be able to help guide you and your loved ones toward an optimal outcome.