By Dave Andrusko
And so it begins. On Monday, the House of Representatives, now under the leadership of pro-life Republicans, has reintroduced the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.
Representative Ann Wagner (R-MO) made the announcement with House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA), and Representative Kat Cammack (R-FL) joining as original cosponsors.
“National Right to Life commends Reps. Wagner, Scalise, and Cammack for reintroducing the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act,” said Carol Tobias, President of NRLC. “This reasonable legislation would protect a baby born alive following an abortion.”
Tobias added, “This bill isn’t about interfering with a so-called right to abortion. It is about stopping infanticide. Congress must act now to pass this legislation and protect these vulnerable babies.”
House Majority Leader Scalise explained that “On the first day of the 118th Congress, I am proud that Republicans are following through on the promises that we made to the American people. All life is sacred and must be protected. Congresswoman Wagner’s legislation will give babies born alive during an abortion the necessary, lifesaving medical care that any other baby would receive to give them the best chance at life. It is appalling that for the last four years, Democrats refused to hold a vote on the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.”
Republicans, Scalise said, “are committed to defending life and doing everything in our power to keep babies who survive an abortion alive.”
Congresswoman Ann Wagner said that “All children should have the right to receive lifesaving care, especially those who survive an abortion. The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act will provide commonsense protections for innocent children and their mothers and will ensure all babies receive the essential care they need at an incredibly vulnerable moment. It pains me that this fight has to be fought at all, but medical care for babies should not be a partisan issue. Now, with Republicans in the Majority, the House will finally take action and vote to protect the fundamental right to life.”
Melissa Ohden is Founder and CEO of the Abortion Survivors Network. She survived a saline abortion at 31 weeks.
“On behalf of the Abortion Survivors Network and the tens of thousands of abortion survivors and their families, we applaud Congresswoman Wagner’s leadership in ensuring infants like me, and countless others are guaranteed medical care and legal protections when abortions fail and life wins. This legislation will save lives. The Abortion Survivors Network is committed to serving survivors of abortion at any gestational age, along with their mothers, who deserve compassionate prenatal and postpartum care, a delivery plan, and emotional support. Let us work together to ensure that infant survivors and their mothers receive the best medical and emotional care possible. We are proud to stand with Congresswoman Wagner in support of this legislation.”
In 2002 Congress enacted the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act. The legislation said that babies who are born alive, whether before or after “viability,” are recognized as full legal persons for all federal law purposes.
The law was enacted in response to troubling indications that some abortion providers and pro-abortion activists did not regard infants born alive during abortion procedures as legal persons – especially if the infants were deemed to be “pre-viable.”
The Born-Alive Infants Protection Act became law without even one single dissenting vote. Not one.
Unfortunately, in the time between 2002 and 2023, the landscape has changed entirely.
In the years since the law was enacted, evidences have multiplied that some abortion providers, despite the clear language of the statute, do not regard babies born alive during abortions as persons, and that they do not provide them with the types of care that would be provided to premature infants who are born spontaneously.
Even with incomplete information, we know that there are numerous instances of babies born alive during abortions.