{"id":242551,"date":"2021-04-02T17:40:42","date_gmt":"2021-04-02T22:40:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=242551"},"modified":"2021-03-31T23:48:24","modified_gmt":"2021-04-01T04:48:24","slug":"set-record-straight-born-alive-abortion-survivors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/set-record-straight-born-alive-abortion-survivors\/","title":{"rendered":"Let’s set the record straight on ‘born-alive’ bills that protect abortion survivors"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A bill that would guarantee health care for children surviving abortions is being mischaracterized by some who claim it would force babies with fatal conditions to spend their last moments in pain from unnecessary procedures that would cause suffering for them and their parents. But New Hampshire House Bill 233<\/a> would give protection to babies born alive after an attempted abortion \u2014 not torture dying infants.<\/p>\n

The Concord Monitor<\/a>\u00a0recently featured stories from parents whose babies tragically died shortly after birth due to fatal birth defects or disorders. For them, the moments they were able to spend holding their children while they were still alive were understandably precious, and helped them grieve. Instead of being connected to tubes and wires, families were able to have their children baptized, get ink footprints, and take much-loved photos.<\/p>\n

Janice Steenbeke’s grandson, Samuel, died 20 years ago. He lived for 30 minutes outside of the womb. \u201cI can\u2019t imagine knowing that you\u2019re carrying a child that\u2019s not going to live,\u201d Janice told the Monitor. \u201cWe chose to go through with the pregnancy and do what we could do and mourn the loss of the baby. Don\u2019t tell me you\u2019re going to take this child and try to save it when it\u2019s not possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet HB 233 does not require a child expected to die within minutes to be forcibly intubated or given CPR. In fact, the bill specifically clarifies that it is meant for abortion survivors<\/em>.<\/p>\n

“Under this bill, a person shall not deny or deprive an infant of nourishment with the intent to cause or alter the death of an infant during an abortion<\/strong>,” the bill’s text reads (emphasis added). The bill merely states that any child born alive \u2014 meaning he or she is breathing, has a beating heart, or is moving \u2014 is a legal human being with a right to “medically appropriate and reasonable care and treatment.”<\/p>\n

Put simply, it states that an infant cannot be deprived<\/em> of medical care, something that is sadly common in the abortion industry.<\/p>\n