After a bill that restricts abortions if the reason is a disability passed the Legislature, Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles Trump regrets the committee he leads didn’t get a chance to review it.
The bill is titled the “Unborn Child with Down Syndrome Protection and Education Act,” but it would apply more broadly to other disabilities.
SB 468 would prohibit licensed medical professionals from performing an abortion if it’s because of a disability unless there is a medical emergency or a non-medically viable fetus. Medical providers who violate the policy would be subject to discipline from licensure boards.
Questions about the policy include whether it would establish protections for unborn children with disabilities above those of other children, whether it would inadvertently create incentives for dishonesty and a moral dilemma about situations where a child is likely to be born with a painful or even fatal disability.
Trump, R-Morgan, considers himself to be pro-life and voted for the bill. But he has reservations about the policy.
“Number one, it does nothing. Number two, it may even be worse than that because it may encourage people to be less than candid or dishonest. It’s among the least favorite pro-life bills that we’ve considered during my tenure in the Legislature,” Trump said this week on MetroNews’ “Talkline.”
The bill was first introduced in the Senate on Jan. 24 and referenced to the Health and Human Resources Committee, then to Senate Finance. The full Senate passed the bill on Feb. 23, and legislation was completed just before midnight on the final night of the regular legislative session.
“There were problems with the bill,” Trump said. “First of all, it didn’t come to the Judiciary Committee, which was unusual. We didn’t have a chance to work on it. Usually those bills come to Health and then to the Judiciary Committee. When bills have mistakes or problems, we have a chance to make them better. That was not the case this year.”
Senator Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, expressed support for the bill today on “Talkline.” She cited constituents who have described parents receiving news of a fetal abnormality or a genetic predisposition who receive advice to terminate the pregnancy. “It’s really terrible, the amount of pressure they receive,” Rucker said today.
Rucker acknowledged the possibility that some families or medical providers might not be forthcoming about reasons for terminating a pregnancy.
“There’s definitely that possibility,” she said. “One of the goals of this legislation is to prevent the pressure that comes from finding out your unborn child may not be perfect and therefore you should get rid of it. It will be illegal to pressure the woman getting rid of that child for that reason.”
Why does @RuckerforWV think it was important to pass the Unborn Child with Down Syndrome Protection and Education Act? Senator Rucker explains her side to @HoppyKercheval. WATCH: https://t.co/yCFQ3nDJuy pic.twitter.com/yUVDv6MhQ7
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) March 15, 2022
Debate when the bill passed the House of Delegates on Saturday was long and intense.
Speaking in favor of the bill on the House floor on Saturday, Delegate Kayla Kessinger said the policy underscores that all life has potential.
“This is about science and morality,” said Kessinger, R-Fayette. “It’s about when does life begin and whether or not it has value. Those are the only two questions you have to ask yourself. Do you believe life is present in the womb and do you believe it has value?”
Delegate Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, said the bill is another step in chipping away at abortion access.
“This ban doesn’t make our state a better place for any child with a disability. But what it does do is it creates government overreach into personal family medical decisions,” he said.
“I think we’ve already firmly established that this bill is not just about Down Syndrome. It’s about a broad range of disabilities and diagnoses, and that includes some pretty devastating disabilities and diagnoses that can lead to painful death early in life. You may know during the pregnancy that if you follow through and have this baby, that baby is not going to live very long. They’re going to live a painful life, and they’re going to die young.”
Margaret Chapman Pomponio, executive director of the pro-choice organization West Virginia Free, also described the broad range of diagnoses that could fall under the scope of the bill.
“The fact is, when you get that diagnosis it is obviously a devastating one, and we don’t believe the government should be intervening in what should be a private conversation between a patient and their provider,” Pomponio said on “Talkline.”
“We think it’s really extreme. It’s lacking compassion. And I think a lot of people just haven’t really thought through what they’re doing to reproductive healthcare.”
She questioned how people could be compelled to provide information about their reasons for ending a pregnancy. “Are we going to hook them up to lie detector tests? This is really ‘1984’ as it pertains to government intervention,” she said.
Why does Margaret Chapman Pomponio, Executive Director of WV Free, and her organization think the Unborn Child with Down Syndrome Protection and Education Act is a bad idea. Margaret joins @HoppyKercheval. WATCH: https://t.co/yCFQ3nDJuy pic.twitter.com/j8vhtVrWdq
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) March 15, 2022