Steven Ertelt at LifeNews reported earlier in April that over 1,200 perinatal babies were born and then died following botched abortions in 2010 in the United States. In Canada, official statistics showed that nearly 500 babies died after live births from 2000-2009. Mona Charen reported on Townhall that live births following botched abortions were “routine.” The legal regulations surrounding abortions in the United States can be very fuzzy – as doctors will sometimes continue performing abortions even when they have lost their medical license.
(Side note: everyone should be reading Steven Ertelt’s excellent LifeNews.com. It’s how advocacy journalism should be done, and done well.)…
It’s likely true that higher medical standards and more protections for live-birth botched-abortion babies would lead to less access to abortion and higher prices for the procedure. More medical standards for abortion would seem to satisfy every condition of the progressive slogan of abortion being “safe, legal, and rare.” But pro-choice advocates have largely abandoned that talking point. It’s increasingly about making abortion as broadly available as possible.
There could be an honest debate about abortion standards and practices if pro-choice advocates acknowledged the prioritization of access over safety and quality. Kermit Gosnell’s clinic of horrors was more shocking to the conscience than the average botched abortion, but there is no shortage of horrible stories that come out of abortion clinics. This isn’t just about Kermit Gosnell – it’s about broad national norms and practices of abortion clinics nationwide.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member