A baby with a serious heart condition who was the center of a multi-state legal fight involving a surrogate who said she refused to terminate the pregnancy underwent surgery Monday, the lawyer representing the child’s biological parents said.McKenna West gave birth to Rumi on Wednesday in Texas.The child was diagnosed with the rare congenital heart condition hypoplastic left heart syndrome in utero.
It is a defect resulting from the underdevelopment of the organ.West has alleged that the biological parents repeatedly pressured her to have an abortion.A response the couple’s attorney filed in Alaska alleges that West was “clear and knowing in her intention to abide by” the parents’ request for a termination if tests revealed a fetal abnormality.Before the child was born, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, an anti-abortion Republican running for Senate, intervened and filed a motion asking the Texas state court to order doctors to perform surgery on the child.
He alleged that the biological parents may refuse to provide the baby with lifesaving care — something the parents have denied.The parents’ attorney accused Paxton of transforming their tragedy into “political theater” and said the parents always placed the health of their baby first.Add to GoogleCustody battle between biological parents and surrogate01:52Rumi on Monday underwent a Norwood procedure, “a complex palliative heart surgery,” Lee Budner, attorney for biological parents Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar, said in a statement.“Rumi is now recuperating under the loving care of his parents and his heroic team of doctors, nurses, and medical staff,” Budner said in a statement.The Norwood procedure is one of three surgeries required in the first several years of life for a baby with the syndrome, known as HLHS, Budner said.“This is the last update on Rumi’s health that his family intends to share,” Budner said.
“His condition remains critical and complex, and his family see...