A former pro-life Texan was forced to flee her state to get an abortion to save her life.
Kailee DeSpain, 29, told CNN that she “was just your quintessential pro-life Texan,” until she and her “one hundred percent pro-life” husband Cade, 32, lost their child at 16 weeks in the first year of their marriage.
“It made me realize that pregnancy can be dangerous,” she said. “It made me think of my little sisters, and I wanted them to be able to have a choice if they ever had to go through something like that.”
It was the first of three miscarriages the couple had in their nine year marriage.
Late last year, the couple was thrilled when they found out they were pregnant again, this time with a boy they named Finley.
Months later they learned that Finley had a rare chromosomal abnormality called Triploidy, which means he had an extra set of chromosome. Multiple ultrasounds confirm that the baby’s heart, lung, kidney and brain problems were severe and he would either not survive to term or suffocate and die within minutes after he was born.
There was also a risk to Kailee’s life as well since women pregnant with triploid babies are at a higher risk of developing preeclampsia, cancer because of an abnormal placenta and blood clots.
In Texas, abortion is banned after six weeks of pregnancy, but there is an exemption for “medical emergencies.” However, the law does not identify which situations constitutes a medical emergency that warrants an abortion.
Kailee told CNN that her doctors said they could give her an abortion, but only if she were at imminent risk of dying i.e. ‘”dying on the table.'” One doctor told her that she would have advised Kailee to get an abortion if the ban was not in place since it would be her safest option and the “most humane course of action” for the baby.
Since abortions are no longer allowed in Texas the doctor told Kailee and her husband that their best option is to head out of state.
The couple decided to make the hours long drive to New Mexico for the abortion. Since their insurance company refused to cover the procedure, they had to ask a family member, who Cade describes as “the epitome of the Trump fanboy” for a loan of $3,500 to cover the cost. The family member was initially reluctant to hand over the cash, but finally relented when Cade made it clear to him that without the procedure Kailee could die.
“I’m still so angry and hurt about it that I can hardly see straight,” Kailee wrote in a Facebook post after the procedure, per CNN. “Finley and I were simply collateral damage in a much bigger picture. It’s hard for me to wrap my head around the thought process of lawmakers that would rather a full-term baby suffocate to death than allow a mother to make a decision that spares her child that pain.”
The president of Texas Right to Life, John Seago, defended the state’s abortion ban to CNN when asked about Kailee’s case.
“Texas law is very clear about what circumstances that an abortion could be performed,” he said. “What happened to [Kailee] and the response of her physicians was absolutely a misrepresentation of the law. And this should never have happened.”
Doctors are hesitant to perform an abortion in Texas because if they violate the law they could lose their medical license, pay steep fines and face a possible life sentence in prison. Also, private citizens can sue any doctor they suspect perform an illegal abortion and be rewarded $10,000 if they’re successful.
