More Women Join Abortion Lawsuit Against Tennessee
Four more women sue state after being denied abortions despite dire pregnancy complications
01.08.24 (PRESS RELEASE) – Today, four more women came forward to join a lawsuit filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights against the state of Tennessee (Blackmon v. State of Tennessee). The lawsuit, one of four similar cases brought by the Center in cases with total abortion bans, asks the court to clarify the scope of the medical necessity exception to Tennessee’s abortion ban. Also today, the Center asked the court for a temporary injunction, which would immediately block Tennessee’s abortion ban as applied to patients with dangerous pregnancy complications while the case proceeds.
This case, Blackmon v. State of Tennessee, was originally filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights in September 2023 on behalf of three patients and two physicians. Tennessee is one of 14 states with total abortion bans, with only very narrow medical exceptions. Today’s updated filing in Tennessee comes a month after the story of Kate Cox captured national attention—a Texas woman in a similar situation who was denied abortion care in her state.
“I am joining this lawsuit today because Tennessee’s abortion ban caused tremendous suffering for me and my family,” said Rachel Fulton, a new plaintiff joining the case today. “My grandmother died in childbirth, leaving behind seven children, so when my doctors explained that my fetus wouldn’t survive and that my own health was at serious risk, all I could think about was my three-year-old son who needs his mom to be alive to take care of him. We had been so excited for baby Titus to join our family, and the twenty-hour round trip journey to have an abortion made a terrible situation even worse. I felt like my life and health had no value. I hope that this lawsuit helps keep other families from being put in the same situation that mine was.”
“As long as this abortion ban remains in place, it’s not safe to be pregnant in Tennessee,” said Monica Kelly, a new plaintiff in the case. “I was inspired to join this lawsuit after hearing other women in the case speak out against the abortion ban that caused my family such grief and trauma. I was forced to flee my home and travel to Florida to receive basic health care that used to be available in my own community. No family should ever be forced to endure the ordeal that Tennessee’s laws forced on mine.”
“After we filed this case in September, our phones lit up with calls from people who were forced to endure similar horror stories,” said Linda Goldstein, Senior Counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights. “These women were put through unnecessary agony and suffering, and some almost died. The medical exceptions to state abortion bans clearly do not work—and that is true not just in Tennessee but in every other state that bans abortion. This is a full blown public health crisis and the Center, by bringing cases in Tennessee, Texas, Idaho and North Dakota, is dedicated to restoring essential healthcare for pregnant patients.”
You can read about each of the four new Tennessee plaintiffs here.
The ban’s confusing language and non-medical terminology have left doctors in Tennessee uncertain about when they are legally able to provide abortion care without being prosecuted. Doctors in the state face loss of licensure, fines, and up to 15 years in prison for violating the law. Meanwhile, pregnant people are being forced to either wait until they are near death to receive care or flee the state if they have the means to do so.
In November 2023, the State of Tennessee filed a motion to dismiss the case by claiming that pregnant people do not deserve the same protection for their lives as non-pregnant people, and went as far as to say that one plaintiff who was sterilized following her harrowing ordeal lacked standing to sue the state since she could not become pregnant again.
Similar lawsuits have recently been filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights in Texas, Idaho, and North Dakota. The Center for Reproductive Rights is dedicated to helping all people access abortion in their communities, including people who are denied care while facing pregnancy complications. If you have been denied care and want to speak to a lawyer about your options, please reach out to [email protected].
The lawsuit was filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights, Morrison & Foerster LLP, and Barrett, Johnston, Martin, & Garrison LLC on behalf of patient plaintiffs Nicole Blackmon; Allyson Phillips; Kaitlyn Dulong; K. Monica Kelly; Kathryn Archer; Rebecca Milner; and Rachel Fulton; and on behalf of physician plaintiffs Heather Maune, M.D. and Laura Andreson, D.O. Defendants in the case include the State of Tennessee, Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners, and the Tennessee Board of Osteopathic Examination.
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