A legal battle has emerged in California involving a Catholic hospital that allegedly denied a woman an emergency abortion. Anna Nusslock, who was pregnant with twins, had her water break at just 15 weeks.
She sought an emergency abortion, fearing that her life was at risk due to potential infection or hemorrhage. However, hospital staff informed her that hospital policy prohibited the procedure because one of the twins still had a heartbeat and her condition was not deemed an immediate risk to her life.
Nusslock said that hospital staff suggested she drive 12 miles to a community hospital for the procedure, providing her with a bucket and towels for the journey. By the time she arrived at the other hospital, she was actively hemorrhaging, according to Nusslock.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit against Providence St. Joseph Hospital in Eureka, asserting that the facility unlawfully denied Nusslock emergency abortion care.
While religiously affiliated hospitals are not required to perform elective abortions, California law mandates that emergency health care providers deliver services when a patient’s life is at risk or they face serious injury.
Bonta said that Nusslock’s case should have qualified for this emergency exception.
The hospital has refrained from extensive comments due to the ongoing litigation but told the Los Angeles Times that it complies with state and federal laws regarding emergency services.
The state is requesting a court order to require the Catholic hospital to provide timely emergency abortions because the community hospital Nusslock initially drove to is closing its labor and delivery unit, leaving Providence St. Joseph as the only facility in the county able to offer emergency abortions, according to the lawsuit.
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Author: Karah Rucker
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