_WORLD WATCH______________________________
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Wrongful birth?
Court rules that mother should have been warned
A French court has ruled that a doctor should have warned the mother of a handicapped girl about the child’s disabilities before the baby was born, so that the mother could have procured an abortion.
The appeals court in Bourdeaux made its ruling under a new law, and said that because 10-year-old Alicia was not killed before she was born, the doctor was negligent and should compensate the family.
Groups representing disabled people, and the National Ethics Committee, criticized the decision. The court gave an initial estimate that the doctor should pay about $85,000 in compensation to the family of the handicapped girl.
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