Deborah Dorbert was forced to watch her son Milo die in her arms because of Florida’s abortion ban. A previous ultrasound showed that he had no kidneys and no chance of surviving birth, but because Deborah was more than 15 months pregnant, she wouldn’t be allowed to terminate the pregnancy, placing her at much greater risk of potentially fatal complications.
Deborah was forced to undergo her ordeal in March 2023, before Florida’s even more restrictive 6-week abortion ban went into effect. She and her husband didn’t have the money to travel to another state, so she endured 13 weeks of agonizing depression, knowing there was nothing she could do to ease her son’s passing or her own pain.
Before the six-week ban went into effect, approximately 60% of the 84,000 abortions in Florida occurred after six weeks of pregnancy. After its passage, tens of thousands of women across the state became unable to access critical reproductive health care. A Center for American Progress report found that, should Florida institute a total abortion ban, as already implemented in 14 other states, it could experience a 29% increase in its maternal death rate.
Nevertheless, Floridians will have a final say on whether they want to protect abortion rights in their state. Earlier in 2024, a referendum that would enshrine abortion rights in the state’s constitution collected sufficient signatures to be placed on the November ballot. Its only obstacle to passage is that, in accordance with state rules, more than 60% of the population needs to vote in its favor. If the ballot initiative does not meet this threshold, Floridians can expect to hear thousands of more heartbreaking stories like Deborah’s.
