By Carol Tobias, President
National Right to Life hosted a congressional briefing on Capitol Hill on Tuesday on the tragedy of babies who survive an abortion but are not provided treatment and care necessary for life.
This is a tragedy that must be addressed.
Joining me in the presentations were Melissa Ohden, founder of the Abortion Survivors Network, Cathy Blaeser, co-executive director of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, and Sarah Zagorski, communications director for Louisiana Right to Life and also an abortion survivor.
In my remarks, I pointed out that, during the recent presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, Linsey Davis, one of the moderators, falsely told a national audience that “There is no state in this country where it is legal to kill a baby after it is born.”
She was wrong. Some babies do survive the abortion but are left to die on a table or in a corner of some out-of-the-way place.
This isn’t a new phenomenon. An investigation by the Philadelphia Inquirer in 1981 said a baby surviving an abortion was a “dreaded complication.”
Nineteen states have laws requiring that a baby born alive during an abortion be given the same treatment and care as any other child born alive at the same gestational age. Unfortunately, many state laws, including federal law, only declare that a baby who survives the abortion is a human being; there are no consequences for the medical staff if they do nothing to help the baby.
Melissa shared her story. Her mother was pressured by family to have an abortion. After surviving several days and more than one attempted saline abortion, she was born alive and then treated only because a nurse rushed her to the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care unit.
Melissa also shared with our audience that statistics from other countries are easier to find as many of the countries have better reporting methods and requirements than the US.
One study in Canada, based on information from Quebec hospitals, found that 11% of abortions performed on preborn children 15-29 weeks gestation resulted in a live birth.
She pointed out that there are more children who survive the abortion than we know about. Mothers who attempted the abortion are also struggling, having to face a child that they try to kill.
Cathy Blaeser explained how the law has drastically changed in Minnesota. State law used to require that babies who survive an abortion be given medically appropriate life- and health-preserving treatment. She included a chilling reminder that, “…moments before that baby is born alive, every person in that room is wanting and working to kill her. They may also have been planning to profit from that baby’s organs and tissue. There is no one advocating for that baby to live.”
The state also required that these cases of live births be reported to the state health department. For the past several years, there were 3-5 babies each year who survived the abortion. An additional requirement was that a medical report be filed detailing the kind of care the baby received.
However, after Democrats took control of the legislature and Tim Walz was elected governor in 2022, things changed for the worse. The law requiring medical treatment for these babies born-alive in the attempted abortion was repealed, along with many other pro-life laws.
Apologists for Walz say he doesn’t support infanticide and that it is illegal. Infanticide via active killing is indeed illegal, but Walz signed legislation repealing a guarantee of lifesaving treatment for born-alive infants. Intentionally leaving viable babies to die is allowed under Walz’s policy.
In addition, the births no longer have to be reported to the state, so there will be no way of knowing how many babies lived through the abortion.
Sarah Zagorski shared the circumstances of her birth, following an induction abortion. She shared the story of how her mother challenged the abortionist, insisting that he take care of the baby. Against the abortionist’s counsel, Sarah was taken to the local hospital and her life was saved.
She also encouraged us to consider the difficult circumstances in which women making these life and death decisions find themselves.
The response from those in attendance was very positive. We’ve already been asked when the next briefing will be. Stay tuned!