my friend and i were planning my baby shower, we just learned we were having a boy, already had picked out a name, and had just set up our baby registry. then my doctor called with the worst news imaginable. our son had developmental abnormalities and would likely not survive and if he did he would never be able to have any kind of quality of life. the stress of learning this was so devastating that i began having intense labor contractions but my water never broke. if i didn’t terminate i would likely end up hemoraging to death the doctor told me. this hell went on for 5 days while i desperately worked to navigate around the laws and restrictions in the area we lived in at the time. finally we found a clinic. my husband drove me several hours, while i was still contracting at regular intervals, to the clinic that would actually perform the d&e abortion that saved my life when i was 23 weeks pregnant. unfortunately, due to laws restricting insurance coverage for abortion, we had to pay thousands out of pocket as my insurance wasn’t allowed to cover abortion. late term abortion saved my life. no woman should be denied access to reproductive healthcare or abortion services. no woman should be forced to pay thousands out of pocket just so she may live.