UNITED STATES: Biological Parents Sue Surrogate McKenna West for $100,000 After She Refused to Abort Baby Diagnosed With Heart Condition
A surrogate mother in the US is being sued for over $100,000 after refusing to abort a baby diagnosed with a serious heart condition.
The biological parents of the baby wanted the child aborted after the health condition was discovered while the baby was still in the womb.
However, the surrogate, McKenna West, refused to terminate the pregnancy and carried to term before giving birth on August 12, 2026.
The case has attracted attention across the US because it raises difficult questions about surrogacy agreements, parental rights, disability and abortion.
According to TMZ, the biological parents, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed, filed a countersuit against West weeks after she gave birth to the baby in Texas.
The couple claims West violated the surrogacy contract after refusing their request to abort the pregnancy when doctors discovered the unborn baby had hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), a rare and life-threatening heart defect.
In court documents obtained by TMZ, the parents are demanding more than $100,000 in damages. They also want compensation for what they described as West’s “malicious, outrageous conduct.”
According to the filing, they had already paid West $60,000 during the pregnancy under the surrogacy agreement, which reportedly contained provisions covering pregnancy termination under certain circumstances.
They argue that West broke the contract and caused them emotional distress.
The controversy began when the baby was diagnosed with HLHS at around 20 weeks of pregnancy.
According to the office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the biological parents asked West to terminate the pregnancy after receiving the diagnosis.
She later travelled to Texas, where she gave birth to the baby boy on August 12.
The biological parents have denied forcing or threatening her to have an abortion. According to previous court filings reported by The Texas Tribune, their lawyers argued that West had initially agreed to the abortion, even scheduling the procedure, before changing her mind.
West has denied doing anything wrong and is asking the court to throw out the lawsuit against her.
Since his birth, the baby, called “Gabriel” by West and “Rumi” by his biological parents, has undergone the Norwood procedure, the first of three complex surgeries usually needed for children born with HLHS.
Doctors say children with the condition are born with an underdeveloped left side of the heart. The surgery is considered life-saving but recovery can be long and complicated.
The biological parents’ lawyer, Lee Budner, confirmed that the operation was carried out and said the child’s condition remains serious. He added that West’s efforts to claim parental rights are “baseless” and violate previous court orders issued in Alaska and California.
West has received support from pro-life organisation Live Action. Its founder, Lila Rose, criticised the lawsuit: “The people who ordered McKenna to abort this little boy because of his heart condition are now dragging her into court, trying to punish and financially ruin her for refusing to kill him, while demanding custody of the same child they ordered to be killed.”
Rose added: “This lawsuit is retaliation against a courageous woman who is barely a week postpartum after carrying this baby and fighting to save his life.”
She also said: “No contract can give one person the right to order the killing of another. Women are not incubators for hire, and children are not products to be discarded when they are sick.”
Meanwhile, the biological parents eventually approved the baby’s surgery and say their focus is now on helping him recover.
West is still seeking parental rights over the child in Texas, with another court hearing scheduled for August 25.