In Brief
A 27-week pregnant woman with a severely malformed fetus sought medical termination of pregnancy due to anxiety about fetal outcome. The fetus had Arnold Chiari malformation, spina bifida, hydrocephalus, and other severe anomalies. The Medical Board found no medical danger to the mother and did not recommend termination. The Supreme Court dismissed the petition, holding that maternal anxiety alone, without medical threat to the mother or Medical Board endorsement, does not justify termination. The Court declined to permit termination of fetal life in such circumstances, emphasizing that potential fetal viability and absence of maternal danger precluded the relief sought.
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