Illinois Woman Sues Hospital After Ectopic Pregnancy Care Delay

Harmonie Perrone, 28, filed a lawsuit Monday against Advocate Good Shepherd in Illinois alleging the hospital twice denied her methotrexate for a suspected ectopic pregnancy. Perrone had previously lost one fallopian tube to an ectopic pregnancy and said she recognized the symptoms immediately.

Hospital staff performed ultrasounds that detected a mass on her remaining tube but did not administer the drug, according to the complaint. She was instead referred to an obstetrician-gynecologist at a med spa the following day. There, Dr Dympna Coll declined to provide methotrexate, Perrone said.

Perrone alleges Coll told her the hospital had to weigh the life of the mother against a possible fetus and cited a one-percent chance of viability. When Perrone referenced Illinois abortion law, the doctor responded that Perrone would not "bully" her into treatment, the lawsuit states.

Perrone went to a second hospital more than 24 hours after her first visit and received methotrexate. Six days later her tube ruptured, requiring emergency surgery that ended her fertility, she said. The complaint cites the Illinois Hospital Emergency Service Act, which requires stabilizing care for ectopic pregnancy, and the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act.

It also references the state's Health Care Right of Conscience Act, which does not apply in emergency settings. Advocate Good Shepherd and Coll did not respond to press inquiries by publication time. Coll has filed a separate defamation suit against Perrone.

Perrone has discussed her experience on social media. She said she is hesitant to pursue IVF because of cost and emotional strain.