Nurse Adriana Smith was in her eighth week of pregnancy when she was declared brain dead in February after a blood clot. Since she lives in Georgia, one of several American states where abortion is effectively banned after the sixth week of pregnancy, her body has been kept alive with the help of a respirator.
Georgia's abortion laws require that 30-year-old Smith be kept alive until the fetus has developed enough to be delivered, according to her mother in a digital collection started to cover her daughter's care.
The mother describes how the family, who were not asked about the life-sustaining measures, have been put in an impossible situation. The fetus cannot be delivered until several months from now, and it is unclear whether it can even survive in a dead mother's womb.
Own Legal Person
Obstetrician and gynecologist Kavita Arora warns of the effects of long-term respirator use on the fetus.
We don't have much science to guide clinical decisions in cases like these, she tells the AP news agency.
The company operating Emory Hospital, where Smith is being cared for, states in a statement that they made the decision to keep her alive according to "Georgia's abortion laws and all other applicable laws".
The state introduced so-called "heartbeat laws", banning abortion from when a heartbeat can be detected from the fetus, in 2022, after the Supreme Court ruling Roe vs Wade was overturned. Thus, the fetus that Smith is carrying is considered an own legal person, who must be kept alive despite the mother being dead.
Three Times Higher Mortality
In the USA, the case has also sparked debate about unequal access to care for black women. A number of studies have found that black women seeking care often receive worse treatment than white women.
In Adriana Smith's case, she is said to have sought care for a headache but was sent home with medication. The same night, she had a blood clot and was declared brain dead upon arrival at the hospital.
In 2023, the mortality rate for black pregnant women was over three times higher than the mortality rate for white pregnant women, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
It is unclear how much it costs to keep Smith alive until the fetus can be delivered and who is responsible for the costs. The family's collection for Smith, who leaves behind a seven-year-old son, also refers to the fact that the child may be born with significant disabilities - if it even survives.
Abortion is deeply contested in the USA. The issue spans religion, women's rights, and poverty reduction.
Between 1973 and 2022, abortion rights were nationally protected through the Supreme Court ruling "Roe vs Wade", which established that free abortion is part of the constitutionally protected right to privacy.
Donald Trump promised before his first presidency to appoint conservative judges to the country's highest court to thereby puncture abortion rights. He got to appoint three, giving the court a clear conservative leaning. In 2022, it overturned "Roe vs Wade".
After that, twelve states have banned abortion in principle, and several more have restricted it, while a number of others have strengthened it. Details differ, legal battles are ongoing in many places, and several states have held referendums with different results.
Opinion polls conducted over time show that around two out of three Americans support the right to abortion.
