Texas woman Kate Cox seeking abortion for high-risk pregnancy leaves state to have procedure after being overruled by highest court

US woman Kate Cox has left her home state – which has some of the strictest abortion laws in the world - after the Texas Supreme Court cancelled a court exemption which granted her leave to terminate a possibly unviable pregnancy.

A woman who sued the state of Texas in a bid to be granted an abortion after her foetus was diagnosed with a life-threatening condition which could also threaten her future fertility has left the state to have the procedure.

Why did Kate Cox apply for an abortion?

Kate Cox, who is more than 20 weeks pregnant, applied for an exemption to be allowed an abortion after she found out her unborn baby had trisomy 18. Most pregnancies of a foetus with this diagnosis end in miscarriage, stillbirth or the death of the baby within the first year of life. It can also affect the mother’s fertility for any future pregnancies.

Ms Cox, who has two other children, took her case to court to be allowed an abortion in her home state of Texas, which has one of the strictest abortion laws in the world. Although lower court granted her permission, the Texas Supreme Court cancelled that exemption on Monday.

Abortions in the state are banned from the point of conception, except if the life of the expectant mother is under threat.

The case was believed to be the first to seek a court-ordered exception since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade last year, paving the way for states like Texas to enact an almost total ban on abortions.

She was granted an exception by a Texas judge on Thursday. However, Ken Paxton, attorney general for Texas, warned any doctors who helped her obtain an abortion would face criminal prosecution.

The Travis County 459th District Court granted an exemption to Kate Cox to be allowed an abortion. However, the ruling was overturned by the Supreme Court.

What is the law prohibiting Kate Cox having an abortion?

The Supreme Court of Texas on Monday said that Ms Cox’s doctor, Damla Karsan, had “asked a court to pre-authorize the abortion yet she could not, or at least did not, attest to the court that Ms Cox’s condition poses the risks the exception requires.”

“These laws reflect the policy choice that the Legislature has made, and the courts must respect that choice,” the court wrote.

“Kate desperately wanted to be able to get care where she lives and recover at home surrounded by family,” said Nancy Northup, the chief executive for the Center for Reproductive Rights, which was representing Ms Cox.

“While Kate had the ability to leave the state, most people do not, and a situation like this could be a death sentence.”

It has not been revealed where she travelled to to obtain the abortion.