In the year 2021, contemporary people pride themselves on being righteous and refined. Our post-modern culture teaches us to look down on our ancestors – to see them as unenlightened and uncivilized.
And yet, maybe we’re the uncivilized ones?
It hard to believe in the 21st century, there are still many states in the Union that provide little to no protection for babies born alive after a failed abortion.
Frequently, if this happens, and it does, the abortionist will simply provide “comfort care” –the newborn infant will be kept comfortable until it dies.
In 2002, Congress passed the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act, which former President George W. Bush signed into law. The bill clarified that for the purposes of federal law and regulations, the words “person” and “human being” included “every infant member of the species homo sapiens who is born alive at any stage of development.”
However, if you thought that meant there would be consequences for an abortion “doctor” refusing to help a newborn struggling to live, think again.
The act contains no teeth – there are no criminal penalties attached to the law, rendering it meaningless for all intents and purposes.
That’s why in recent years, pro-life lawmakers have been trying to pass the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. The bill would require “health care providers” present during a failed abortion to do two things:
- “Exercise the same degree of care as reasonably provided to another child born alive at the same gestational age.”
- “Immediately admit the child to a hospital.”
If the providers failed in these respects, they would be subject to criminal penalties, including a possible fine and up to five years in jail.
To date, the bill has failed to pass through the U.S. Congress, to our nation’s great shame.
Therefore, the job of protecting newborn infants has fallen to the states.
Currently, just 18 states have legislated adequate protections for newborns born alive after a failed abortion (requirements to try to preserve the newborn’s life; requirements to hospitalize the newborn/or have a second physician present; legal penalties for failing to comply).
Now, the Ohio legislature has passed the Born Alive Infant Protection Act (SB 157).
In addition to requiring attending physicians to provide life-saving medical care to newborn infants, the bill also “protects taxpayer dollars from funding the killing of unborn children by preventing doctors who work for state-funded hospitals and medical schools from contracting with abortion clinics.”
This provision could cause two of the state’s abortion clinics, who rely on state-funded doctors, to close, potentially saving the lives of hundreds of preborn babies.
The Center for Christian Virtue (CCV), an affiliate of the Focus-allied organization Family Policy Alliance, issued a statement praising the Ohio House of Representative’s passage of the bill.
“Planned Parenthood and the rest of the abortion industry proved yet again that they never truly cared about women’s health—only their profits—when they fought against this life-saving law. Thankfully, the Ohio Legislature sent a strong message today that every child’s life is valuable, no matter their size, ability, or location,” said CCV Legislative Liaison Nilani Jawahar.
“By passing SB 157, the Legislature also protected Ohio taxpayers by ensuring that our state has nothing to do with the destruction of our most vulnerable, the unborn.”
It’s true that the wheels of justice, and our democratic system of government, turn slowly. Changing the law is difficult work.
And yet, because of the hard work of pro-life supporters and legislators, the battle to protect preborn babies has taken one more small step forward.
Photo from Shutterstock.
