Legal Definitions - wrongful-birth action

A wrongful-birth action is a specific type of lawsuit brought by parents against a healthcare provider, such as a doctor or genetic counselor. This legal action alleges that the provider's negligence prevented the parents from making an informed reproductive decision, specifically regarding whether to conceive a child or continue a pregnancy.

The core of a wrongful-birth action is the claim that the healthcare provider failed to adequately inform the parents, before or during the pregnancy, about significant risks that their child would be born with a severe birth defect or genetic condition. The parents contend that if they had received accurate and timely information about these risks, they would have chosen to avoid the birth of the child, either by deciding not to conceive or by terminating the pregnancy.

Here are some examples illustrating a wrongful-birth action:

• Example 1: Undetected Genetic Condition
  A couple undergoes prenatal genetic screening because of their advanced maternal age. The laboratory responsible for analyzing the blood samples negligently misinterprets the results, reporting a low risk for chromosomal abnormalities when, in fact, there was a high probability of a severe genetic disorder. The doctor then advises the couple that their risk is low, and no further diagnostic testing is recommended. The child is subsequently born with a severe and debilitating genetic condition that would have been detectable through proper screening and follow-up tests. The parents could file a wrongful-birth action, arguing that if they had been correctly informed of the high risk, they would have pursued further testing and potentially chosen to terminate the pregnancy.

• Example 2: Misinterpreted Ultrasound Findings
  During a routine second-trimester ultrasound, a pregnant woman's obstetrician or the radiologist performing the scan fails to identify clear and obvious signs of a severe physical birth defect, such as a major heart malformation or a neural tube defect like spina bifida. The report indicates a normal fetal anatomy. The child is born with the severe defect, requiring extensive medical care and surgeries. The parents might initiate a wrongful-birth action, claiming that the healthcare provider's negligent interpretation of the ultrasound deprived them of the opportunity to understand their child's condition prenatally and make an informed decision about continuing the pregnancy.

• Example 3: Failure to Offer Relevant Testing
  A woman with a known family history of a specific, severe hereditary disease (e.g., Fragile X syndrome) consults her physician about planning a pregnancy. Despite being aware of the family history, the doctor fails to recommend or offer appropriate genetic counseling or carrier screening tests that could have determined her risk of passing the condition to her child. The woman conceives, and her child is later diagnosed with the severe hereditary disease. The parents could pursue a wrongful-birth action, asserting that the doctor's failure to offer crucial genetic testing prevented them from assessing the risks and making an informed choice about conception or pregnancy continuation.