New York’s changes to the abortion law that has been in place for the last 49 years has caused confusion among both pro-lifers and pro-choicers. From what “health of the mother” encompasses to whether women will die without late-term abortion, the myths and false assumptions are everywhere. Here are the facts.
Myth #1: The New York law only allows for late-term abortion when the health of the mother is at risk (or in the most dire circumstances).
TRUTH: In 1973, on the same day that Roe v. Wade legalized abortion, the Supreme Court released its ruling on another abortion case called Doe v. Bolton. In this decision, the court found that physicians, as the medical experts, should be the ones to determine if an abortion is necessary or not. Doe’s text reads, “medical judgment may be exercised in the light of all factors – physical, emotional, psychological, familial, and the woman’s age – relevant to the wellbeing of the patient. All these factors may relate to health.” Therefore, when the New York law or any abortion law uses the phrase “in cases of risk to the mother’s health” the definition of “health” can be any reason under the sun, left up to the discretion of the abortionist who stands to profit financially from the abortion.
Myth #2: Women will die without late-term abortion.
TRUTH: Purposefully taking the life of a preborn child is never necessary to save the life of the mother. For example, with pre-eclampsia, in which a woman’s blood pressure becomes dangerously high, a woman’s life can be put in immediate danger. Would it be better for a physician to perform an emergency C-section to save the mother and hope to save the child, or commit a late-term abortion that will take at least two days after which the woman will go through labor to deliver a dead baby? It is faster and safer to deliver the child via C-section than to put the woman through a late-term abortion, and children born as early as 21 weeks are surviving and thriving when given proper medical attention.
In fact, since the expansive New York abortion law was signed, doctors have been coming forward with the truth.
Dr. Omar L. Hamada tweeted, “I want to clear something up so that there is absolutely no doubt. I’m a board certified OB/GYN who has delivered over 2,500 babies. There’s not a single fetal or maternal condition that requires third trimester abortion. Not one. Delivery, yes. Abortion, no.”
Dr. David McKnight wrote:
It appears that the state of New York has legislated that an unborn baby can now be killed at term…. As a board-certified practicing OB/GYN physician for over 30 years, I need to say publicly and unequivocally, that there is NEVER a medical reason to kill a baby at term. When complications of pregnancy endanger a mother’s life, we sometimes must deliver the baby early, but it is ALWAYS with the intent of doing whatever we can to do it safely for the baby too…. God help us.
Those are just two of the many doctors who are speaking out. In the video below, former abortionist Dr. Anthony Levatino explains why abortion is actually never necessary:
READ: There is no medical reason for an abortion at any stage. Here’s why.
Myth #3: Late-term abortions are necessary in cases of fetal anomalies.
TRUTH: As Dr. Hamada stated in his tweet above, there isn’t a single fetal condition that requires abortion. It is devastating when parents receive a prenatal diagnosis for their preborn child, but killing that child is not medically necessary. Still, about 67 percent of children diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted in the United States, which is a complete act of discrimination based on misinformation about life with Down syndrome. In cases where doctors label the child as “incompatible with life” such as Trisomy 18, advancements in medicine and the willingness of doctors to help these children are proving that children can survive with Trisomy 18.
However, for children with conditions that will more than likely cause their death at or shortly after birth, abortion is also not necessary. The abortion industry claims a woman will avoid weeks of sadness from carrying a baby she knew would die; however, research indicates the opposite. Studies show that women who terminate because of a prenatal diagnosis suffer from depression and regret including guilt for the abortion, social isolation because of the abortion, and grief triggered by reminders of pregnancy. Women who carry to term, on the other hand, report feeling emotionally and mentally prepared for their child’s death, having “a sense of gratitude and peace surrounding the brief life of their child,” according to Perinatal Hospice and Palliative Care. If the parents are worried that their baby will suffer if carried to term, they can rest assured knowing that as neonatologist Dr. Elvira Parravicin has said, “The vast majority of my experience is the baby becomes very quiet, stops breathing, and then the heart stops. [….] the baby himself or herself has a peaceful experience.”
Myth #4: No one has late-term abortions/late-term abortions are rare.
TRUTH: According to the latest data, there are about 1,671 abortion providers in the United States. Of those, 20 percent commit abortions after 20 weeks. That equates to more than 330 abortion providers nationwide who are willing to kill viable preborn children. According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2015, approximately 8,296 abortions were committed at and after 21 weeks gestation (using Guttmacher’s latest 2014 abortion numbers, that figure could be around 12,000). That’s about 25 preborn babies, 21 weeks and older, killed per late-term abortionist. Late-term abortion is definitely not rare.
While New York is just one of many states that allow abortion right up until birth, the signing of the new law has awakened Americans to the reality of the abortion industry. Women do not need abortion. They need support and resources to allow them to parent each of their children in the best way possible.
Editor’s Note, 1/26/19: This article previously noted that 33 abortion providers in the U.S. were willing to commit late-term abortions. That number should have read 330, and has been corrected.
2/4/19: Updated with possible estimate using Guttmacher abortion statistics.
