In 1988 I was 35 and refused amnio and I don’t think they had a blood test at that time for diseases like Down Syndrome...which wouldn’t have made a difference.
As to the amnio I told my doctor that no matter what amnio showed I wasn’t going to abort. So because I refused the test, I had to sign a document, have it
notarized, the whole bit, stating that I was refusing the test and if the baby was
born with a problem that could have been picked up by the amnio, then we would not sue for “wrongful birth.” That was almost 30 years ago. Now with all the specific testing, I’m sure the pressure to have the tests is so much stronger.
I have a 7 mos old child. The pressure to take the test was there, but mild pressure. We were reassured there was no need to extract amniotic fluid like the old days. I asked my wife if she would want and love her baby regardless. It was insulting to ask her, but I did for the Doctor’s sake. Then I told the doctor no to the test. We were asked 1 or 2 more times by the doctor. And again when an advanced ultrasound was done by the doctor doing that. We told the 2nd doctor the same thing as the first and that was that. All told the pressure was very mild. There was no disclosure to sign. And like the woman in this article, my wife was considered old, at the age of 38.
You can thank the lawyers for that. You hear the ads all the time.