Reproductive justice advocates have long warned that overturning Roe v. Wade would lead to a rise in maternal mortality, especially among low-income women of color. Unfortunately, this warning has become reality. A recent report by ProPublica revealed the first verified death linked to abortion bans. Amber Nicole Thurman, a 28-year-old Black single mother and medical assistant in Georgia, passed away due to a severe infection after being denied a routine medical procedure that was outlawed under Georgia’s six-week abortion ban.
Thurman’s death occurred in August 2022 and was officially labeled as “preventable” by a state committee tasked with reviewing pregnancy-related fatalities. This is the first documented abortion-related death since the Supreme Court overturned Roe, confirming advocates’ fears that restrictive abortion laws could result in fatal consequences.
“This is proof of what we already knew: that abortion bans kill people,” stated Mini Timmaraju, president of the abortion-rights organization Reproductive Freedom for All. “It cannot go on.”
Amber Thurman is likely not the only victim of such laws, even though her case is the first to be officially verified. Investigations into maternal deaths typically take years to complete, so additional cases may emerge. According to ProPublica, state committees often operate with a two-year delay in examining cases, meaning that experts are just beginning to explore deaths that occurred after Roe v. Wade was overturned.
Earlier in 2023, the story of Yeniifer Alvarez-Estrada Glick, a 29-year-old Texas woman who died in July 2022 from complications of a high-risk pregnancy, surfaced. Her medical records did not indicate any discussion of how an abortion could have alleviated the strain the pregnancy put on her heart.
Thurman’s case unfolded after she discovered she was pregnant with twins. She opted for an abortion but found herself unable to access care in Georgia, as the state had just implemented a six-week abortion ban. She then traveled four hours to a North Carolina clinic, where abortions were still allowed past 20 weeks. Thurman received the two-drug regimen of mifepristone and misoprostol to terminate the pregnancy.
A few days later, she began experiencing intense pain and heavy bleeding. Though complications from abortion pills are rare, some patients need a dilation and curettage (D&C) procedure to remove remaining fetal tissue and prevent life-threatening sepsis. The North Carolina clinic could have performed the D&C for free if she had lived closer. However, after vomiting blood and fainting at home, Thurman was rushed to a hospital in the Atlanta suburbs. Despite showing signs of infection, it took until the next day for her to be brought into surgery. Tragically, she died in the operating room.
The delay was attributed to Georgia’s abortion ban, which caused hesitation among medical professionals to perform a D&C—even in emergency cases. According to Georgia’s maternal mortality review committee, Thurman’s death could have been prevented if the D&C had been performed sooner.
“These devastating bans did not just prevent Amber from accessing abortion care in her state; they also delayed the routine, lifesaving care she later needed, leaving her to suffer and die,” stated Timmaraju.
While abortion bans in every state include exceptions to save the life of the pregnant individual, medical providers often face uncertainty about when they can act without risking legal repercussions. This has led to dangerous delays in care for pregnant women nationwide.
Reproductive justice leaders also emphasize that these bans disproportionately impact Black women, who are 2.6 times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Reproductive justice is not just about abortion access,” said KR Redman, executive director of SPARK, a reproductive justice group in Georgia. “It’s about the right to comprehensive, culturally sensitive healthcare for all of us. Amber’s case exemplifies ongoing systemic negligence that continues to claim Black lives.
