On the recordOctober 3, 2017
I thank the gentlewoman from New York for yielding to me. Mr. Speaker, today I rise for Kerri from New Jersey. This is her story. With the help of a fertility specialist, Kerri and her husband were thrilled to be expecting their first baby in January of 2016. All of Kerri's tests and scans were looking great until the 20-week ultrasound. Kerri recounts: Our ultrasound tech spent a lot of time looking at her heart, and, finally, the doctor from maternal fetal medicine came in. As she scanned, she told Kerri and her husband that there were some severe brain and heart abnormalities. The doctor also told them the chest cavity was small and that the lungs were not developing properly. A few days later, a geneticist told Kerri and her husband that the baby had three copies of every chromosome, a very rare condition. The doctor informed them that infants born with this condition very rarely survive more than a few days after delivery. According to Kerri: We both calmly made the decision to have an abortion. We did not want our little girl to suffer. We would much rather take on that suffering for her. On behalf of Kerri, New Jerseyans, and women everywhere, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this rule and vote ``no'' on H.R. 36.
