Vice President Kamala Harris recently visited Georgia to address the state's abortion restrictions in the wake of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling, which overturned the precedent set in Roe v. Wade.

During her speech, Harris referred to the deaths of two women, Amber Nicole Thurman, 28, and Candi Miller, 41, as evidence of the danger posed by the state’s abortion laws, suggesting that the demise of these women was a direct result of Georgia’s abortion restrictions following the Supreme Court’s decision, as the Washington Examiner reports.

Harris stated that these women died due to what she called the "Trump abortion ban" in Georgia, though this assertion is contested by legal experts and healthcare professionals.

According to Harris, Georgia's restrictive abortion laws prevented the women from receiving life-saving care, a claim that has sparked debate among lawmakers, medical professionals, and advocacy groups.

Deaths Raise Concerns Over Abortion Bans

One of the women, Amber Nicole Thurman, passed away from sepsis in August 2022 after taking abortion medication. Thurman, who was nine weeks pregnant with twins, had traveled to North Carolina for an abortion and later returned to Georgia, where she suffered from severe complications. Her death came after a delay of more than 20 hours in receiving a dilation and curettage (D&C) procedure, which is typically used to remove fetal tissue. According to some reports, her death could have been avoided with timely medical intervention.

However, Georgia’s law, which bans most abortions after six weeks, did not prohibit the D&C procedure that Thurman needed. Experts have pointed out that the state’s law allows treatment for complications arising from abortions and miscarriages. Nonetheless, Harris claimed that medical professionals feared prosecution under the law, which contributed to the delay in Thurman’s treatment.

Fears of Prosecution Led to Delayed Care

In a second case, Candi Miller reportedly took abortion pills she purchased online in November 2022. Miller, who had lupus, did not seek medical help after taking the medication, reportedly due to concerns about legal repercussions under Georgia’s abortion law. The exact stage of her pregnancy at the time remains unclear, but experts indicate that fear of prosecution may have played a role in her decision not to seek care.

According to Harris, these tragic outcomes are part of a larger healthcare crisis caused by restrictive abortion laws like Georgia’s. She claimed that under these laws, healthcare providers faced potential prison sentences of up to 10 years if they offered certain types of care, contributing to the reluctance of doctors to act quickly in these cases.

Experts Dispute Harris’s Claims

While Harris’s statements have garnered attention, medical and legal experts have disputed her characterization of Georgia’s abortion law. Dr. Christina Francis, a prominent anti-abortion advocate, stated that the deaths of Thurman and Miller were likely the result of the deregulation and promotion of abortion drugs, rather than restrictions imposed by the state. Francis argued that the increasing use of abortion medication, which the Biden-Harris administration has supported, can lead to serious complications, including sepsis.

Katie Daniel, another critic of Harris’s stance, also pushed back, claiming that Georgia’s abortion law did not contribute to the deaths. She stated that Georgia’s law allows for treatment in cases of medical emergencies and that doctors should not have been deterred from providing care to women experiencing complications from an abortion or miscarriage.

ProPublica Investigates Medical Delays

A separate investigation by ProPublica revealed that Thurman’s death was preventable had she received earlier medical care. The delay in providing her the necessary D&C procedure was seen as a major factor contributing to her death. Although Georgia’s law does not restrict the use of D&C in such cases, Harris has argued that fear of prosecution under the state’s abortion ban created an environment where doctors hesitated to act.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has also reported that a small percentage of patients who undergo medication abortions experience severe complications requiring emergency care. Studies have shown that self-administered abortions using medication may result in a higher rate of severe or critical medical issues compared to surgical abortions or live births.

Harris Pushes for Abortion Rights Protections

Harris’s statements come as part of a broader push by the Biden administration to protect and expand abortion rights nationwide, particularly in states like Georgia that have imposed stricter laws since the Dobbs decision. Planned Parenthood Southeast and other reproductive rights organizations have echoed Harris’s concerns, arguing that the state’s abortion restrictions endanger women's health by preventing them from accessing timely and necessary medical care.

The debate over abortion pills, in particular, has grown more intense, with anti-abortion advocates highlighting the risks associated with their use. Dr. Francis emphasized that medication abortions carry the risk of incomplete abortions, which require medical attention to prevent serious health outcomes like sepsis.

The Ongoing Battle Over Abortion Rights

The conflicting narratives between Harris’s claims and expert opinions underscore the complex legal and medical landscape surrounding abortion laws in the United States. As the country grapples with the implications of the Supreme Court’s ruling, states like Georgia are at the forefront of the debate over how restrictive abortion laws should be and what the consequences of those laws might be.

In her remarks, Harris was adamant about holding former President Donald Trump accountable for the current state of abortion rights in Georgia, stating, “This is a healthcare crisis, and Donald Trump is the architect.” However, critics of her position argue that the deaths in Georgia are more closely tied to the mismanagement of medication abortions rather than legal restrictions on reproductive healthcare.

Conclusion

Vice President Kamala Harris’s remarks on Georgia’s abortion laws and the deaths of two women have sparked a heated debate.

While Harris blames the state’s restrictive abortion policies for the tragedies, experts have questioned this claim, pointing to other factors such as the deregulation of abortion pills.

As both sides continue to argue their positions, the larger issue of abortion access remains a contentious and deeply polarizing topic in the United States.