Joined by two Democrats, North Carolina Senate Republicans passed the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.
Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger's office described the bill in a press release:
The legislation requires health practitioners to treat an infant born alive after a failed abortion with the same duty of care as they would any other infant in similar medical circumstances, and it is limited only to instances in which a child is completely extracted from his or her mother and displays signs of life (e.g., has a beating heart or is breathing). The bill asserts that a child that is completely extracted from his or her mother has the same rights as any other human who is alive after leaving the mother.
Democrats and abortion advocates say it's not needed, would do nothing... while doing too much...
Abortion-rights lawmakers and activists strongly oppose the bill, saying the problem it attempts to address is nonexistent. They also say that state medical licensing boards and current criminal laws already punish doctors and nurses who fail to offer care to a newborn. Rather, they argue, the measure seeks to force medical actions between a physician and a pregnant woman, interfering with her right to an abortion.
The measure will go to the House, where it is expected to win approval.
Democratic Governor Roy Cooper has indicated he'll veto the bill.
Oh! Also, keep an eye out for a redefinition of when a fetus becomes a baby...
Pete's Prep: Tuesday, April 16, 2019
- Despite spending three years pining for an "independent judiciary," Gov. Cooper continues to name leftists to the state's highest courts. The latest being the Court of Appeals.
- From the News & Observer: "A North Carolina congressman called Monday for a federal investigation into a Middle East conference co-sponsored by Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill and suggested federal grant money could be pulled from the two universities’ Consortium for Middle East Studies."
- Asheville Police arrest 39-year old vandal for more than a dozen graffiti incidents, according to the Citizen-Times.