Kansas State Rep. Ron Bryce is a physician who in 1988 witnessed a baby survive an abortion attempt. Bryce said he cosponsored the state’s Born Alive Infants Protection Act to ensure abortion survivors like that baby receive appropriate medical care.
In an op-ed for The Wichita Eagle, Bryce explained, “I was the medical resident on duty at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, Texas when I was called to a ‘Code Blue’.”
A Code Blue signifies that someone is suffering a life-threatening emergency, but upon entering the room, Bryce didn’t notice anyone who appeared to be in distress. There was only the quiet medical staff and a young woman, sedated but awake, on the operating table.
“Then there was a cry,” he said. He turned and saw a premature newborn on a metal table in the corner of the room.
“He had accomplished the seemingly impossible — survived his abortion,” wrote Bryce. “Though strong enough to live briefly outside the womb, he was still too young to survive very long separated from his mother. Healthcare had failed to take his life, then subsequently was able to offer very little to help him live.”
Bryce transferred the baby boy to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and said, “[I]t became obvious he was too tough to die quickly.”
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He added, “Over several more hours his breathing grew more labored. He grimaced. Then his grunting quieted, movement ceased, and the grimace passed. I pronounced him dead.”
Previously, Bryce told Live Action News, “Before I treated that little boy, I was nominally pro-life.”
He continued, “I didn’t realize the humanity — the horrendous things that are going on — until it was right in front of me in my hands. I remember looking down at him. I remember I promised myself that I would not have this death be for nothing.”
Now, Bryce is making good on that promise.
He wrote for The Wichita Eagle on Monday, “This was the first I knew of an infant surviving an abortion attempt. I assumed it was rare. But then our county health department investigated infant mortality cases, and found 27 of these babies born alive over a 3-year period. It has been an honor for me to serve in the Kansas House of Representatives and to join with more than 50 of my colleagues in the 2023 session to co-sponsor the Born Alive Infants Protection Act. This bill is now law. It ensures that Kansas medical providers provide appropriate care for any baby born alive.”
The law also ensures that instances of abortion survival are reported, including details regarding the care that is provided to them.
Though Governor Laura Kelly vetoed the bill in April, along with other pro-life bills, the Kansas House and Senate completed a veto override, allowing the Born Alive Infants Protection Act to become law.
