Case Closed: UNM settles in Atkins’ negligent referral case.
Over the last two years Abortion On Trial has released updates regarding the civil lawsuit filed on behalf of the estate of Keisha Atkins. Keisha died of a septic abortion after UNM referred her to Albuquerque’s Southwestern Women’s Options abortion facility for an elective 24 week induction abortion.
Now we are pleased to share the latest and last update on the case: UNM settled for $365,000.00
Looking back over the last 5 years since Keisha’s death we’ve seen a lot of very concerning evidence to support the Atkins family’s claims.
We know from Keisha’s medical records that her 24 week abortion was purely elective and had no medical motivation whatsoever. Of course Medicaid wont cover elective late term abortions but that was easily loopholed. Dr. Shannon Carr testified in under oath deposition that She documented Keisha’s abortion as necessary for the sake of her mental, physical, emotional, and familial health based on “sheer speculation”. And by making that “speculation” Dr. Carr was able to provide Keisha with her electively sought out Medicaid covered abortion. And we now know this was not the first time providers at Southwestern Women's Options committed Medicaid fraud.
When Keisha received her elective abortion the providers at the outpatient clinic UNM referred her too, who is facing a wrongful death case of their own, not only gave her inconsistent and dangerously addictive drugs for days, they also chose not to transport Keisha to the hospital at the first sign of her septic infection and instead administered Benadryl.
She was referred, by a hospital who knows better, to an abortion clinic that is known to fail inspections and perform a procedure that abortion experts like Mark Nichols and Lisa Keder testify is too dangerous to be performed outside of a hospital. Its also been recommended by ACOG that induction abortions should be done in hospital settings and insurance providers wont cover outpatient inductions due to their risk to patient safety. And despite what New Mexico press like the Albuquerque Journal have reported, Keisha died of a septic outpatient abortion that she never should have been offered.
After Keisha died, the UNM Intensivist who treated her, Dr. Trenton Wray, said “Everything about her course was consistent with septic abortion-> refractory septic cardiomyopathy-> death." UNM medical examiners eventually agreed Keisha contracted sepsis during her elective late term abortion.
Once the case was filed and Keisha’s medical records were obtained by AOT attorneys a number of major concerns were validated and the evidence showed what a truly negligent decision it was on behalf of UNM to refer this young woman to Southwestern Women’s Options for an elective 6 month abortion.
After a few years of legal battles, hearings, and major Covid delays the case has finally been dismissed and UNM has agreed to pay the Atkins family $365,000.00 for the negligent referral that led to Keisha’s death. Of course it is important to note that $365,000.00 is actually going to be paid by the taxpayers who are funding this public university’s negligent decisions.
Abortion On Trial is pleased with this settlement not only for sake of the Atkins family, but for the sake of women’s safety going forward. If a major university is paying $365,000.00 for referring a woman to an abortion clinic, anyone referring women to abortion clinics should be terrified of the risks they're taking. Induction abortion is simply too dangerous to be performed outside of a hospital and this settlement shows just how much risk practitioners take on when they choose to refer women to abortion clinics.
