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Thursday, Oct 26 2017

Full Issue

Undocumented Girl Gets Abortion Following Intensely Watched Court Case

The case -- at the crossroads of two hot-button topics: abortion and immigration -- captured the attention of the country. The girl was able to obtain the procedure after a full appeals court overturned an earlier decision by a panel of three judges.

An immigrant teen in federal custody who was seeking an abortion over the Trump administration's objections had the procedure Wednesday after a U.S. appeals court ruled in her favor, her lawyers said. (Gresko and Merchant, 10/25)

The teenager, who is 17 and is identified in court documents as Jane Doe, illegally crossed the border in Texas in early September and was apprehended. Her pregnancy was discovered during a physical exam, and since then she had been fighting in court to have an abortion. In a statement released by her lawyers and her court-appointed guardian, Jane Doe, who had been nearly 16 weeks pregnant, wrote of coming to the United States with dreams of one day becoming a nurse, and of not being ready to be a parent. (Fernandez, 10/25)

The abortion ended the girl鈥檚 individual court challenge in a case that drew widespread attention and evoked the incendiary issues of abortion rights and illegal immigration. But the broader legal battle over whether the federal government may continue to dissuade, and even block, undocumented teens in its custody from having abortions is still pending in U.S. District Court in Washington. (Sacchetti and Marimow, 10/25)

Though the abortion took place, the case is not over. The ACLU still is challenging the underlying HHS policy on behalf of a class of other teens who may be similarly situated. 鈥淭he administration鈥檚 efforts to interfere in women鈥檚 decisions won鈥檛 stop with Jane,鈥 said Brigitte Amiri, an ACLU lawyer for the teenager. 鈥淲ith this case we have seen the astounding lengths this administration will go to block women from abortion care.鈥 (Kendall, 10/25)

And in other news聽鈥

A 10-year-old girl with cerebral palsy has been detained by federal immigration authorities in Texas after she passed through a Border Patrol checkpoint on her way to a hospital to undergo emergency gall bladder surgery. (Yee and Dickerson, 10/25)

This is part of the Morning Briefing, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.
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