Kamala Harris: A Tragic Consequence of Georgia’s Abortion Ban.

Kamala Harris is addressing a report that highlights the first preventable death connected to Georgia’s six-week abortion ban.

Georgia’s maternal mortality committee has documented the first preventable death associated with the state’s six-week abortion ban in 2022.

On Monday, ProPublica published a concerning report about the abortion-related death of a woman who died shortly after Georgia’s near-total ban was implemented. Amber Nicole Thurman, 28, discovered she was six weeks pregnant with twins just days after the ban took effect in July 2022.

Already a single mom to a 6-year-old son and having recently moved out of her family’s home to prepare for nursing school, Thurman felt it wasn’t the right time to welcome two more children.

“When she learned she was pregnant with twins in the summer of 2022, she quickly decided she needed to preserve her newfound stability,” Thurman’s best friend, Ricaria Baker, shared.

With Georgia’s abortion ban in effect, Thurman waited a few weeks to schedule her abortion, hoping the ban would be blocked in court. When that didn’t happen, she made an appointment in North Carolina by her ninth week. The clinic was inundated with patients from other states with similar bans, and when Thurman missed her appointment due to traffic, she couldn’t reschedule because of work, childcare, and transportation issues. Instead, she accepted the clinic’s offer for abortion pills.

Abortion pills are generally safe, but they carry risks of complications that can be easily managed during an in-clinic procedure. Due to the abortion bans, Thurman had no access to adequate care. Days after taking the pills, she vomited blood and fainted at home.

She was taken to the hospital by ambulance, where tests showed remaining tissue in her uterus and a diagnosis of sepsis, a severe infection that is a major cause of maternal death. To save her life, she needed a routine procedure called dilation and curettage (D&C), but Georgia’s ban had recently made it a felony with a potential 10-year prison sentence.

During the procedure, Thurman’s heart stopped, just 20 hours after doctors determined her condition was critical enough to warrant the operation to avoid prison time.

“This young woman in Georgia should have received the care she needed and deserved without delay,” says Dr. Jamila Perritt, an OBGYN and president of Physicians for Reproductive Health.

“This tragedy is a stark reminder that as these legal restrictions spread across the country, we will continue to see devastating consequences, including more preventable deaths, changes in our healthcare system, and growing health disparities,” Perritt emphasized. She added that “complications from procedural or medication abortions are extremely rare,” and if they do happen, it’s “crucial for medical providers to ensure that all patients receive timely, compassionate care without fear of criminalization.”

In July 2022, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp (R) expressed his “joy” at the implementation of the ban, claiming it would keep women “safe, healthy, and informed.” A spokesperson for the governor called the report on Thurman’s death a mere “fear-mongering campaign.”

However, Kemp is facing backlash on social media in light of the findings.

“You did this @GovKemp,” one critic stated.

“Every SCOTUS Justice who voted to repeal Roe is responsible for her death, along with every Republican in GA who supported the harsh law that contributed to this,” another added. “It’s 2024, and Republicans have taken us back to a time when women die in pregnancy because they can’t get care.”

Abortion rights are a key issue in the upcoming 2024 election, with Vice President Kamala Harris labeling Thurman’s death a consequence of the Trump administration’s policies.

“This young mother should be alive, raising her son, and pursuing her dream of attending nursing school,” Harris said in a statement.

“Women are bleeding in parking lots, being turned away from emergency rooms, and losing the chance to have children again. Survivors of rape and incest are being denied the right to make decisions about their own bodies. And now women are dying. These are the consequences of Donald Trump’s actions.”