Posted on 03/05/2020 6:16:56 PM PST by Morgana
Republican Gov. Jim Justice today signed into law a bill to protect babies who survive abortions from infanticide.
The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act (HB 4007/SB 231)now becomes state law to provide further protection for abortion survivors at a time when no Democrat running for president and Democrats in Congress have refused to do so.
The Senate voted 32-0 in favor of the bill on February 10, 2020. The Born-Alive Bill’s overwhelming House passage by a 93-5 margin on January 15 was bipartisan as well.
The Born-Alive Bill will enact requirements that a baby born alive during an abortion must be afforded “the same degree” of care that would apply “to any other child born alive at the same gestational age,” including transportation to a hospital; and mandatory reporting of violations. It also makes it possible, for the first time, to investigate and prosecute these cases because West Virginia law will define the actions required by the abortionist in the case of a born-alive survivor of abortion along with the penalties for failure to comply with the law.
“Today we’re going to put a stake in the sand that says for us at least we stand for life and we stand for the right stuff,” he said. “For crying out loud, at some point in time we’ve got to stand for common sense. If I had my way, I could just write up here in a second that I stand for life in all cases — all the time.”
“To the God above, that baby is worth it,” the governor said.
West Virginians for Life president Wanda Franz told LifeNews.com she’s delighted the bill will become law.
“West Virginians for Life thanks the legislators and leadership in our state Capitol for passing the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. This new law puts teeth in our state legal system to make it possible to report and prosecute these cases. The people of West Virginia want these infants to be protected by West Virginia law,” Franz said.
The legislation requires abortionists to provide reasonable medical care to a baby who survives an abortion. According to the bill, physicians must “exercise the same degree of reasonable medical judgment to preserve the life and health of the child as a physician would render to any other child born alive at the same gestational age; and to ensure that the child born alive is immediately transported and admitted to a hospital.”
While celebrating the victory for babies in West Virginia, pro-life advocates also lamented that U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Congressional Democrats have not been cooperative with similar federal legislation. In 2019, Pelosi blocked the federal Born Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act more than 80 times.
Though babies’ survivals have been called “imaginary” and protections for them unnecessary, state health data indicates that at least 40 babies were born alive after botched abortions in just three states between 2016 and 2018. According to the state health data, 11 babies were born alive after botched abortions in Minnesota, 10 in Arizona and 19 in Florida.
Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, as well as the personal testimonies of nurses and abortion survivors themselves, also provide evidence that babies survive abortions. According to the CDC, at least 143 babies were born alive after botched abortions between 2003 and 2014 in the U.S., though there likely are more.
Research by the American Center for Law and Justice estimated the number is much higher, at least 362 between 2001 and 2010.
Despite the strong need for protections for babies who survive abortions, Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate blocked a federal Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act almost 100 times in 2019.
Currently, about 18 states do not have laws to protect abortion survivors from infanticide. Some states never have passed laws to protect abortion survivors, while at least two others, New York and Illinois, repealed their laws requiring medical care for infants who survive abortions.
In 2019, Texas passed a law strengthening protections for infants who survive abortions. The state legislatures in Montana, North Carolina and Wisconsin did as well; however, their Democratic governors vetoed the legislation. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers argued that the legislation was “not a productive use of time.”
Now the pro-aborts are looking for a friendly judge to rule this new law is unconstitutional or some such.
Caring for babies born alive?!?!
Isn’t that considered murder NOW and EVERYWHERE in the US??
Thank you, Governor Justice, and West Virginians for Life.
It is a great work you have done for the infants born alive in your state.
Leaving abortion survivors to die in closets and waste baskets has been going on for 47 years, ever since Roe v. Wade.
This barbaric practice must be stopped in all fifty states.
Remember Kermit Gosnell? Remember Douglas Karpen? Yea seems we have to have this law because in abortion clinics the workers really thought it was okay to do what they did. I AM NOT KIDDING! They saw Gosnell and Karpen do it and they knew abortion was legal so they thought this was legal. Checking the laws was above their pay grade. Most of these women really had not gone to nursing school anyway. Some were not even out of high school.
good grief.
I can’t find the story on the website.
Never mind — I clicked the link in your article, Morgana.
Thank God!! And thank you, West Virginia!
I’m sad that such a bill is even necessary. Wouldn’t you think moral physicians would automatically render all aide to an infant????
I thought murder (killing someone already born) was already a crime.
WVA Democrats are conservative.
This just goes to show how backwards and racist the South is! No wonder West Virginia seceded from the Onion./s
You will pay the price!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - Chucky Schumer
I thought there were 57 states
That creative outta the box mentality of yours again. So NOW you claim killing people already born is murder or something?
We need to put you in a room in silicon valley and just let reframe problems!
But seriously, isn’t it some serious mission creep that the abortion crowd has now moved the goalpost so far that there is even a discussion about what to do about people who are alive and separate from the “mother”?
;)
Hard to say which of these murderers were worse.
Tiller the Killer should be on that list.
And I still pray for the vigilante who took him out!
Chuckie beware.
That is not a threat. It was merely my Brooklyn self speaking harsh words. /sarc
Coming from you, Hyman Roth, that should make Schmucky go into hiding!
I can’t believe we are even discussing “infantcide” much less US Representatives enabling and supporting murdering a tiny baby.
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