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8h ago

Georgia Brain-Dead Mother’s Baby Survives Premature C-Section as Life Support Ends

Georgia’s abortion ban requires sustaining pregnant patients until viability, leading to nearly four months of support before her son Chance entered neonatal care.

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Adriana Smith, 31, developed a severe headache in February at nine weeks pregnant. It was a sign of blood clots in her brain.
Smith’s mother said her daughter had to stay on life support until she gave birth because of Georgia’s six-week abortion ban, which has narrow exceptions for rape, incest or the life or health of the pregnant person.
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Overview

  • Adriana Smith was declared brain-dead in February at eight weeks pregnant and remained on life support under the state’s six-week abortion ban.
  • Doctors delivered her son, Chance, via emergency C-section on June 13; he weighed 1 pound 13 ounces and is now in the NICU.
  • Medical teams withdrew Smith’s life support on June 17, concluding a nearly four-month period of maintaining her body to preserve the pregnancy.
  • Attorney General Chris Carr has said the LIFE Act does not explicitly mandate life support for brain-dead patients, a stance at odds with the family’s account and hospital practices.
  • Smith’s relatives say they had no say in the decision to continue treatment, highlighting concerns over patient autonomy, ethics in end-of-life care and family hardship.