A Texas woman died in September 2021 after doctors delayed treating her miscarriage for 40 hours, according to a ProPublica investigation. The delay occurred just days after the state's six-week abortion ban took effect, leaving doctors uncertain about when they could legally intervene.
Josseli Barnica, 28, sought care at a hospital on 2 September 2021, the day after the ban became law, with cramps at 17 weeks pregnant. Despite her condition worsening and doctors diagnosing an inevitable miscarriage, they did not intervene because the fetus still had a heartbeat. Under the Texas law, which bans abortion from conception, doctors could only act in a 'medical emergency'—a term left undefined.
After 40 hours, the fetal heartbeat stopped, and doctors induced labour. Barnica was discharged but returned days later with severe bleeding. She died of sepsis involving retained pregnancy tissue. Experts told ProPublica her death was preventable, as standard care would have involved earlier intervention to reduce infection risk.
HCA Healthcare, the hospital chain, stated that doctors exercised independent judgment and that the hospital complies with state laws. The Texas governor and attorney general declined to comment. The case has become part of a broader debate on abortion rights in the US, with Democrats like Colin Allred, running for Senate against Ted Cruz, citing it as evidence of the ban's dangers.
