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A Black Louisiana mother who was denied an abortion now faces the decision of carrying her baby to term even though it has a rare skull condition or traveling to a different state for the procedure.
Nancy Davis, a mother of one, is 13 weeks pregnant with her second child, but the doctors have informed her that the baby won't survive.
“It’s hard knowing that ... you know I’m carrying it to bury it...you know what I’m saying,” Davis told local Baton Rouge station WAFB.
Davis and her boyfriend were excited to welcome their new baby, but an ultrasound at 10 weeks from Women's Hospital revealed the child's fatal condition.
“It was an abnormal ultrasound, and they noticed the top of the baby’s head was missing and the skull was missing, the top of the skull was missing,” Davis said.
According to the mom, the baby was diagnosed with acrania, a rare and fatal condition where the skull fails to form in the womb.
Health experts say children with acrania only survive minutes to hours after birth.
Yet, Davis was denied an abortion because her life isn't in danger and the condition doesn't qualify under the Lousiana Department of Health's exceptions.
The expectant mother must decide whether to deliver a baby that won't survive past hours or cross state lines for the procedure.
“Florida is the closest...so ideally Florida," Davis noted referencing states that she may be allowed to have the procedure. "But then the next closest place would be North Carolina or something.”
Though Davis didn't take a stance on abortion, she believes lawmakers should broaden the list of conditions that qualify for an abortion in the state.
“I just want them to consider special circumstances as it relates to abortion...medical problems, like this is one that needs to be in that,” the Baton Rouge mother said.
Davis noted that she has to make a decision quickly because other states that allow abortions have cut-offs at 15 weeks.
A spokeswoman for Women's Hospital declined to comment on the situation because of patient privacy laws.
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