Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, a pro-life Republican from Washington state, excitedly announced in May that she and her husband were expecting their first child. One month later, however, their journey took a sharp turn:
"At a recent, routine ultrasound appointment we received the difficult news that our baby has a serious medical condition called Potter's Syndrome. Potter's Syndrome (or Potter's Sequence) is abnormally low amniotic fluid caused by impaired kidney function which inhibits normal lung development and is often fatal. We have had a second opinion and the medical diagnosis was consistent with the initial news: there is no medical solution available to us. We are praying for a miracle."
They prayed for a miracle and that’s exactly what they got. Although babies born with Potter’s syndrome typically die within a couple of days after birth, baby Abigail is alive and doing relatively well—two weeks later.
According to a birth announcement Beutler posted on Facebook Monday, the couple was given two choices during the pregnancy: abortion or expectant management. “Multiple doctors explained that based on medical evidence her condition was incompatible with life and that, if she survived to term, she would be unable to breathe and live only moments after birth,” the statement reads. “We were also told that dialysis or transplant were not possible. The options we were offered were termination or “expectant management,” that is, waiting for her to die. Instead, we chose to pray earnestly for a miracle. Many of you joined us.”
According to all the doctors the Beutlers have spoken with, Abigail is the “first baby with bilateral renal agenesis to breathe sustainably on her own.” Today, the child medical experts said wouldn’t survive and should be aborted is “active, stable and breathing on her own.”
“We feel called to share with you the details of this wonderful story of God's work and the remarkable doctors who helped us in the near future. At the moment, our focus is, of course, on our beautiful fourteen day old daughter.”
To read more about Abigail’s remarkable story, click here.