Kate Cox, Texas woman who fled Texas to get an abortion, announces she's pregnant at Dobbs event

She said she needed an abortion to preserve her ability to have more children.

ByEmily Chang
June 24, 2024, 3:25 PM

Kate Cox, a woman denied an emergency abortion last year in Texas, announced on Monday that she is pregnant again.

Her news comes on the second anniversary of the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision overruling Roe v. Wade -- eliminating the constitutional right to an abortion nationwide.

PHOTO: Kate Cox, the Texas woman who had to leave the state for an abortion after being denied one last year, introduces Vice President Harris, at an event on reproductive rights at the University of Maryland on June 24, 2024 in College Park, Md.
Kate Cox, the Texas woman who had to leave the state for an abortion after being denied one last year, introduces U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, at an event on reproductive rights at Ritchie Coliseum on the campus of the University of Maryland on June 24, 2024 in College Park, Md.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

In December 2023, Cox sued the state of Texas in an attempt to obtain an emergency abortion that she said her doctor deemed necessary to protect her health and her chance of future fertility.

Cox's fetus was diagnosed with trisomy 18, a condition described as incompatible with life.

The Texas mother of two had said she "desperately" wanted a chance to try for a third child but was in jeopardy of losing her uterus due to Texas' abortion bans.

The Texas Supreme Court ultimately ruled against Cox, forcing her to leave the state to get an abortion.

"Wanted, prayed-for pregnancy sometimes ends in abortion," Cox said at a campaign event in Maryland on Monday with Vice President where they called for restoring abortion access.

She had been the guest of first lady Jill Biden at the president's State of the Union address back n March.

PHOTO: Vice President Kamala Harris embraces Kate Cox, the Texas woman who was denied an abortion last year, as she arrives on state to deliver deliver remarks on reproductive rights at the University of Maryland on June 24, 2024 in College Park, Md.
Vice President Kamala Harris embraces Kate Cox, the Texas woman who was denied an abortion last year, as she arrives on state to deliver deliver remarks on reproductive rights at Ritchie Coliseum on the campus of the University of Maryland on June 24, 2024 in College Park, Md.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Reflecting on her experience, Cox said, "It was every minute that I stayed pregnant, the risks to my health and to a future pregnancy were growing." She described her doctor's assessment as "the most painful thing" she's ever been told.

"Today, I am happy to share that I'm pregnant again," she said to cheers and applause.

Cox said she is due in January. She said she hopes, by then, "it will be a world led by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris."

Cox also thanked Biden and Harris for "fighting tirelessly" for reproductive rights, and urged voters to "restore our reproductive rights" in November.