What’s next for pro-life policy in D.C. and in state legislatures?
By / Feb 3

As we step into a new year, as well as a new administration in Washington, D.C., we want to join together to discuss this important moment in the pro-life movement. We believe that the 50th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court case which will occur in January of 2023 will mark a significant moment in time for the pro-life movement. We have a powerful opportunity now to begin 2021 discussing the future of the pro-life movement and begin casting a vision for the next three years—what we are calling the “Road to Roe50”.

This panel first aired during the ERLC’s Evangelicals for Life conference on Thursday, January 28, 2021.

This episode was sponsored by The Good Book Company, publisher of Being the Bad Guy by Stephen McAlpine.

Guest Biographies

Denise Harle serves as senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom. Denise focuses her litigation efforts on defending the First Amendment freedoms of pro-life health care professionals and pregnancy resource centers. She also works to defend pro-life legislation around the nation. Since joining ADF, Harle took the primary role in drafting the briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court in NIFLA v. Becerra, resulting in a free speech victory for California pro-life pregnancy centers.

Steven Aden serves as Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel for Americans United for Life. Aden is an experienced litigator, having appeared in court against Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry dozens of times and appointed by the attorneys general of six states to defend pro-life laws securing numerous victories.

Resources from the Conversation

GameStop, selling the Lifeway building, and a conversation with Julie Masson
By / Jan 29

In this episode, Josh, Brent, Julie, and Meagan discuss GameStop, how the economy is similar to that of WWII, social channels cracking down on political ads, the status of former President Trump’s possible impeachment, the CDC’s recommendation for schools, Israel leading in vaccinations, Lifeway selling their building, and Super Bowl commercials. Julie also gives a rundown of some of the ERLC’s most popular content from Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram this week. 

About Julie

Julie Masson serves as Director of External Engagement for the ERLC. She is responsible for strategic planning, development and implementation of the ERLC brand strategy across all ERLC departments and provides leadership and oversight for the ERLC marketing team as well as coordinating external affairs and partnership deliverables. Julie and her husband Jesse spent two years in Spain with the International Mission Board before moving to Kansas City where they live with their three children. She is a graduate of Iowa State University. You can connect with her on Twitter: @juliermasson

ERLC Content

Culture

  1. Worst economy since WWII
  2. GamesStop goes Gangbusters
  3. Big Tech bolts politics
  4. Google pausing all political ads following Capitol siege
  5. All the platforms that have banned or restricted Trump so far
  6. Early Procedural Test Shows Where Senate GOP May Stand On Convicting Trump
  7. CDC makes case for schools reopening
  8. January deadliest month for Covid
  9. Israel leads in global race to vaccinate
  10. Lifeway building under contract, transitions to new work environment
  11. IMB partners with 140 international Baptist conventions in fulfilling Great Commission
  12. Budweiser won’t run a commercial during the Super Bowl for the first time in 37 years.

Lunchroom

 Connect with us on Twitter

Sponsors

  • A Parent’s Guide to Teaching Your Children About Gender: by Jared Kennedy. This short book walks through six conversation topics designed to help you apply the truth and hope of the gospel to the complex issue of gender. 
  • Stand for Life: At the ERLC, we stand for life. Our work to save preborn babies and care for the vulnerable is vital to our work. Believing that abortion can end in our lifetime, will you join us as we STAND FOR LIFE?

Three leaders who shaped the evangelical Pro-Life Movement
By / Jan 29

Every January the March for Life rally brings thousands of people to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., to “end abortion by uniting, educating, and mobilizing pro-life people in the public square.” This year, because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the “heightened pressures that law enforcement officers and others are currently facing in and around the Capitol,” the event organizers have made the rally virtual and are encouraging pro-lifers to join by watching the broadcast online. 

The event brings in around 250,000 attendees each year, including tens of thousands of evangelicals. (In 2016 the annual Evangelicals For Life Conference began to coincide with the March for Life.) But when the original March began in 1974, abortion was still considered a “Roman Catholic issue.” 

For example, prior to the 1970s, many Southern Baptists either took no position on abortion or were accepting of legal abortion under certain conditions. A poll conducted by the Baptist Sunday School Board in 1970 found that 70% of SBC pastors supported abortion to protect the mental or physical health of the mother, 64% supported abortion in cases of fetal deformity, and 71% in cases of rape. In 1971, the leadership of the Christian Life Commission (which was later renamed ERLC) even supported a resolution—which was later adopted at the SBC annual meeting—that called upon Southern Baptists to “work for legislation that will allow the possibility of abortion under such conditions as rape, incest, clear evidence of severe fetal deformity, and carefully ascertained evidence of the likelihood of damage to the emotional, mental, and physical health of the mother.”

Fortunately, there were still some leaders within evangelicalism who understood the necessity of protecting life in the womb. Although thousands of people helped launch the movement, there are three leaders who during the 1970 and 1980s had a particularly important influence on getting evangelicals to embrace the pro-life cause. 

Harold O.J. Brown

When abortion became legal throughtout the U.S., Harold O.J. Brown, a Harvard-trained theologian, historian, and philosopher, was working as an associate editor at Christianity Today in 1972. As WORLD magazine notes, “On Jan. 21, 1973, he joined some members of the American Medical Association and the Christian Legal Society in New York to discuss abortion and a strategy to combat it. The next day, the high court handed down its Roe v. Wade decision. Brown hurried home to write his magazine’s lead editorial.” 

“This decision runs counter not merely to the moral teachings of Christianity through the ages but also to the moral sense of the American people,” wrote Brown in that editorial. 

Three years later Brown left the magazine and founded the Christian Action Council, the first major U.S. evangelical pro-life organization, and became a contributor to newly established journal, The Human Life Review. The Christian Action Council would later adopt the name “Care Net,” and become one of the major networks for pregnancy resource centers. 

When Brown died in 2007, Michael Kruger, now the president of the Charlotte campus of Reformed Theological Seminary, said that Brown’s “most central place of influence is rightly considered the pro-life movement. He not only anticipated the problem before abortion was legalized, but he has been one of the great organizers of actions to deal with the problem.” 

C. Everett Koop

One of the men who joined Brown in founding the Christian Action Council was Dr. C. Everett Koop. Koop was a pioneer in pediatric surgery who invented many of the anesthetic and surgical techniques that are now used on neonates and infants. In 1956 he established the nation’s first neonatal surgical intensive care unit, and became the first editor of the Journal of Pediatric Surgery when it was founded in 1966.

Early in his career he became convinced that “abortion amounted to taking a sacrosanct human life.” This lead him in 1975 to wrote The Right to Live; the Right to Die: Famous Pediatric Surgeon Speaks Out on Abortion and Mercy Killing. The influence of Brown is apparent in this book, observes Matthew S. Miller. “Koop evidently kept Brown’s articles close at hand as he put his own thoughts to paper,” says Miller, “He quotes from Brown more than from any other source (other than the Bible), often whole paragraphs at a time.” 

In his memoir Koop says, “I aimed the book primarily at Christian readers, as I sought to awaken the evangelical community to a vital moral issue they were choosing to ignore.” The 120-page treatise would sell over 100,000 copies in its first year of publication, and another 100,000 in the years that followed. 

Koop’s pro-life activism caught the attention of newly-elected president Ronald Reagan, who nominated Koop to be U.S. Surgeon General in March 1981. When Reagan published his 1984 book on abortion—the only book to be published by a U.S. President while in office—the original version included an essay by Koop titled “The Slide to Auschwitz.” 

Francis Schaeffer

In 1950, Koop removed the appendix of a young girl named Priscilla, which sparked a lifelong friendship with the girl’s father, Francis Schaeffer. A few years later, Schaeffer would leave the U.S. to set up the ministry organization called L’Abri (“The Shelter”) in Switzerland. Harold O.J. Brown brought Schaeffer back to the states to give a series of lectures in Boston, including at Harvard. These lectures lead to Schaeffer and his wife Edith becoming well-known figures within evangelicalism. 

After the Roe decision in 1973, Schaeffer took up the cause of opposing abortion. In 1979, he partnered with Koop on Whatever Happened to the Human Race?, a project that included a five-part film series, a book, an activist handbook, and an international lecture tour. 

“In Washington, D.C., the series was screened by prominent politicians and opinion makers; churches across the country showed the series to their congregations,” noted PBS. “Thousands of evangelicals heard Schaeffer’s message and became persuaded that they had a duty—indeed, a moral obligation—to set aside their long-standing aversion to politics and step into the political arena.”

“It is difficult to overestimate the incredible impact that Francis Schaeffer and Dr. C. Everett Koop made on evangelical Christians in the latter third of the 20th century,” said Richard Land, former president of ERLC. “Everyone devoted to the pro-life cause owes an incalculable debt of gratitude to Francis Schaeffer and to Dr. C. Everett Koop.”

Explainer: President Biden rescinds the Mexico City Policy
By / Jan 28

Today, President Biden announced that he will rescind the pro-life Mexico City Policy. The Mexico City Policy, established by President Reagan, prohibits U.S. foreign aid to groups that provide or promote abortion overseas. This policy has been a political football since President Clinton first rescinded it. One of President George W. Bush’s first administrative actions was reinstating this policy, and the policy has gone back and forth since then.  

Why is it named for “Mexico City”?

In 1984, President Reagan gave a speech announcing the policy at the United Nations International Conference on Population Development (ICPD) hosted in Mexico City. President Reagan instituted this important new pro-life policy at this UN conference because its purpose was to ensure that U.S. federal money would not suppor any foreign nongovernmental organization (NGO) that “performs or actively promotes abortion as a method of family planning.” 

How has the policy changed?

During the last four years, the Trump Administration broadened the Mexico City Policy, and it is currently known as the “Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance Policy” (PLGHA). The purpose of PLGHA is to “prevent American taxpayers from subsidizing abortion through global health assistance provided for populations in need.” This policy ensured that, in order to recieve any foreign aid, international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) agreed to neither perform nor actively promote abortion as a method of family planning overseas. PLGHA expanded the Mexico City Policy to include “global health assistance furnished by all departments or agencies” to the extent allowable by law. 

This policy only applied to voluntary family planning assistance funded by USAID and assistance for certain voluntary population planning furnished by the Department of State. 

According to a recent Marist poll, 77% of Americans are opposed to using tax dollars to support international abortion. This is up from 75% who answered similarly each of the past two years. There’s broad bipartisan support among Americans on not funding abortion abroad, and our policies should uphold life internationally.

Why does this policy matter?

Since 1976, the Hyde Amendment has prevented the federal government from allocating taxpayer dollars to fund abortions domestically. Eight years later, the Mexico City policy likewise began prohibiting the government from exporting pro-choice ideology and promoting and funding abortion abroad. President Biden’s decision to rescind the Mexico City policy is deeply disappointing, not only to Christians but to millions of Americans who recognize the value of human life in the womb.

Abortion remains a highly contentious issue in American society. Yet since Roe v. Wade, Americans have agreed that taxpayer dollars should not be used to fund abortions here at home. Unfortunately, that consensus is endangered by this decision from the Biden White House. It is outrageous that our government would use revenues from citizens with the strongest possible moral objections to abortion, to fund efforts to promote and advance abortion overseas. 

The ERLC strongly objects to this decision. As ERLC president Russell Moore said in 2017, “the usage of taxpayer money to fund abortions is and always has been morally repugnant.” Our government and its leaders not only have moral obligations to uphold justice, protect conscience rights, and defend life, but also a responsibility to pursue common sense fiscal policies. In rescinding the Mexico City Policy, President Biden and the administration forsaken those obligations. Even worse, they have done so in service to the abortion industry’s international business interests. One lobby’s interests are not worth violating the consciences of millions of Americans. 

Despite these unwelcome developments, the ERLC will continue to advocate for policies that save lives and promote human dignity here in the United States and around the world.

Learn more about our work in the pro-life space and subscribe to our pro-life email list here.

President Biden’s Executive Actions and the Psalm 139 Project
By / Jan 26

Jeff, Chelsea, and Travis discuss President Biden’s first week of executive actions, both those which are praiseworthy and others which raise concern. This flurry of policy-making from the White House also shows how far we’ve strayed from the constitutional structure of our federal government.

Then, our colleague Elizabeth Graham joins the roundtable for the first time to introduce the ERLC’s Psalm 139 Project which places life-saving ultrasound machines in pregnancy care centers. The ERLC’s efforts to Stand For Life take a big step forward this year as we launch our Road to ROE50 initiative at our annual Evangelicals For Life conference.

Guest Biography

Elizabeth Graham serves as Vice President of Operations and Life Initiatives for the ERLC. She provides leadership, guidance and strategy for life and women’s initiatives and provides oversight to other strategic projects as needed. Additionally, she directs the leadership, management and operations for all ERLC events. Elizabeth is a graduate of the University of Tennessee and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. She is married to Richmond, and they have a son and a daughter.

Resources from the Conversation

Former NFL player Benjamin Watson and his family donate ultrasound machine
By / Dec 18

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Dec. 17, 2020—Benjamin Watson, former NFL tight end, and his family continue their partnership in the pro-life work of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission’s Psalm 139 Project, by donating an ultrasound machine to the Palmetto Women’s Center in Rock Hill, S.C., as well as giving Christmas gifts to 10 families affiliated with the local pregnancy center this week. 

Watson and his wife Kirsten are passionate about championing the dignity of human life. By giving these gifts, they desired to express to these families their value and worth while sharing the gospel of Jesus. The Watsons previously partnered with the Psalm 139 Project in 2018 to place an ultrasound machine in 9th Ward of New Orleans, La.

“After seeing our preborn children through ultrasound technology, we knew we wanted to provide this life-affirming opportunity to other expecting mothers,” Benjamin Watson said. “ We are blessed to partner with the ERLC again to support men and women making decisions for life as well as these essential centers that continue to walk beside them.”

The Psalm 139 Project focuses on aiding pregnancy resource centers by securing ultrasound machines and providing training for their use. The centers use the machines in their life-saving work to support women and families in crisis pregnancy situations, helping many to make the choice for life. 

“We believe The Psalm 139 Project is a vital piece of the life work we do at the ERLC,” said Elizabeth Graham, ERLC vice president of operations and life initiatives. “This week, we were able to hold our long-awaited dedication service at the Palmetto Women’s Clinic with our dear friends, the Watson family. Benjamin was able to dedicate, pray over and personally thank the staff for the life-saving work they’re doing. We ask you to consider joining us at the ERLC as we stand for life.”  

Earlier this year, the ERLC’s Psalm 139 Project placed an ultrasound machine at Mosaic Sexual Health Clinic in Tallahassee, Florida, and another ultrasound machine at Care Net Pregnancy Center of Las Cruces in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The ERLC announced last week that the Psalm 139 Project will be donating 10 ultrasound machines to pregnancy resource centers across the country. This is the most machines the ERLC has ever placed at a given time. 

Because the ERLC is funded through the generous giving of churches in the SBC through the Cooperative Program, the organization can ensure that one hundred percent of contributions designated to the Psalm 139 Project go solely toward purchasing ultrasound machines and providing training for workers. Tax-deductible gifts may be made to ERLC, 901 Commerce Street, Nashville, Tenn., 37203. Learn more at psalm139project.com

Who counts as a person?
By / Dec 1

I had the dubious distinction of graduating from high school in 1973, the year Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton where handed down by the Supreme Court, giving the U.S. the most permissive abortion policy in the Western world. I remember well the question everyone was asking at that time: “When does human life begin?” 

Justice Harry Blackmun famously wrote in the court’s majority opinion, “We need not resolve the difficult question of when life begins. When those trained in the respective disciplines of medicine, philosophy, and theology are unable to arrive at any consensus, the judiciary, at this point in the development of man’s knowledge, is not in a position to speculate as to the answer” (p 159). For decades, the abortion debated hinged on the answer to that question. 

Today, no matter what their view on the legality of abortion, every informed and honest person agrees that an individual human life begins at conception. The science is settled. When half the chromosomes from a woman’s egg line fuse with the other half from a man’s sperm, a new, genetically unique human being comes into existence. To be exact, at least one genetically unique human being comes into existence, because twinning is still possible at that point.  So, human life begins at conception.

We’ve known the science for a long time, but the implications have become clearer over time. For instance, the debates in the early 2000s over human embryonic stem cells actually helped to clarify the debate about abortion. For a long time, the debate about abortion was ostensibly as much about a woman’s body as about the destruction of an embryo or fetus. Abortion was justified, and still is by many, on the basis of a woman’s right to control what happens in her body. The fetus is in her body, so the woman has a right to have it removed, even if doing so results in the death of the fetus—or so the argument goes. 

With the human embryonic stem cell debate, the woman’s body was removed from the equation. The light was shown like a laser on the living human embryo. Human eggs and sperm were retrieved from donors, fertilized in a petri dish, and coaxed to develop in vitro (literally, in glass). The debate about human embryonic stem cell research was never about “when human life begins.” Everyone knew that the eggs were from a human female, the sperm from a human male, and the result was living human embryos. Dead embryos would not work for research purposes. And the scientist doing the research did not want dog embryos, cat embryos, or even mouse embryos. They wanted human embryos, and that’s what they got. Living. Human. Embryos.

The question of personhood

How, then, can someone who believes that human life begins at conception justify abortion or even human embryonic stem cell research? Because the question has been reframed. Of course the embryos are clearly human, and of course these tiny humans are clearly alive, but they are not persons. The argument shifts then. Yes, persons have a right to life—a right not to be unnecessarily harmed—but, the argument goes, human embryos are not yet persons. Only persons have a right to life. 

When does personhood begin?  That is the question now. Or to put it another way, are embryos persons? Are fetuses persons? For that matter, are newborns persons?  

In a seminal essay on abortion, reprinted in nearly every introductory anthology on ethics, philosopher Judith Jarvis Thomson posed a hypothetical. Suppose, she said, you awakened one morning to find that someone had surgically connected your kidneys to a world-class concert violinist in order to preserve the ailing violinist’s life. This will mean that you might be confined to a bed for nine days, nine months, or nine years, depending on how long he lives. Thomson asked, “Are you morally obligated to maintain the connection?” 

She then embarks on a very interesting, if convoluted, journey to try to demonstrate that you only have a very minimal obligation to sustain the life of the violinist if doing so does not cause great inconvenience to you. Even though she is willing to grant for the sake of the argument that a fetus is a person, at the end of the essay she reveals her own view of the moral status of the unborn human being. “At this place, however, it should be remembered that we have only been pretending throughout that the fetus is a human being from the moment of conception. A very early abortion is surely not the killing of a person, and so is not dealt with by anything I have said here.” Case closed. Fetuses are not persons, according to Thomson. So, is no harm done in killing “it”? No, to be accurate, the fetus is a him or her. Even our language signals that fetuses are gendered persons. 

What is personhood? Or, better, who is a human person? Human persons (in contrast to divine and angelic persons) are individual members of the species Homo sapiens. Rocks are not persons, plants are not persons, and animals are not persons, despite efforts to grant great apes, dolphins, and other animals personhood status. In theological terms, a human is someone made in God’s image and likeness (Gen. 1:27). 

In Genesis 9:1-7, God makes a distinction between animals and humans, giving Noah and his family permission to kill the animals for food, but prohibiting the unjust killing of another human being because humans alone are made in God’s own image. The image of God, the imago Dei, is the basis of human exceptionalism. Although there are various theories about just what constitutes the image of God in humanity, it’s clear from Scripture that human beings alone are made in God’s image.

Human beings—imagers of God—are persons from conception. This is clear in passages like Psalm 139:13-16 (HCSB):

For it was You who created my inward parts;
You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I will praise You
because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made.
Your works are wonderful,
and I know this very well.
My bones were not hidden from You
when I was made in secret,
when I was formed in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw me when I was formless;
all my days were written in Your book and planned
before a single one of them began.

David, the psalmist, acknowledges God’s intricate handiwork in the womb. He also realizes that God knew him as a person before he was born. The real questions today, then, are who counts as persons, and what are our obligations to persons? If every member of the species Homo sapiens is a person, then we have certain obligations not to unnecessarily harm other human beings. The unjust taking of the life of an unborn human being is a harm. Therefore, abortion is wrong because it is the destruction of a human person. 

ERLC’s Psalm 139 Project Places Ultrasound Machine at Mosaic Sexual Health Clinic in Tallahassee
By / Oct 13

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Oct. 13, 2020—The Psalm 139 Project, a pro-life ministry of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, placed an ultrasound machine at Mosaic Sexual Health Clinic, a new facility opened by A Women’s Pregnancy Center in Tallahassee, Fla. as a part of its mission to save lives.

The Psalm 139 Project focuses on aiding pregnancy resource centers by securing ultrasound machines. Since its inception, the Psalm 139 Project has provided 24 ultrasound machines for pregnancy care centers in Florida, Louisiana, Texas, Indiana, Colorado, Mississippi, Florida, Arizona, Ohio, Maryland, Missouri, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas and New Mexico. 

Elizabeth Graham, ERLC vice president of operations and life initiatives, commented on the significance of the ultrasound placement machine. 

“The Psalm 139 Project allows the ERLC to raise money for life saving ultrasound machines, where 100 percent of the proceeds go towards the purchasing, training and placement of a machine in a pregnancy resource center. Each placement allows abortion-vulnerable and abortion-determined women to get a glimpse of the life inside their womb. We are thankful for our partnership with Mosaic Sexual Health Clinic and A Women’s Pregnancy Center and the wonderful work they are doing to rescue babies in Tallahassee. We have seen, firsthand, the positive effect these ultrasound machines have on saving preborn lives and will continue to place machines in pregnancy resource centers and women’s health clinics around the country.”

Jamie Brown, executive director for A Women’s Pregnancy Center, commented on the Psalm 139 Project’s ultrasound placement. 

“Women come to Mosaic Sexual Health Clinic often terrified and confused as they face an unexpected pregnancy. Thanks to the Psalm 139 Project’s generous donation of a brand new ultrasound machine, we can gently show them their children for the first time. The moment they see their child, everything shifts in their hearts. Now they have a child, not just a problem. Planned Parenthood, our next door neighbor, charges $100 for their clients to see their ultrasound. We let them see for free. Thanks to the Psalm 139 Project for providing this stunning opportunity to show our clients life. Many children are being rescued from abortion because you care.”

Dean Inserra, pastor of The City Church in Tallahassee, Fla., and local ministry partner at Mosaic Sexual Health Center commented on the placement. 

“As a local church, we are first and foremost called to the mission field of our local community. A Women’s Pregnancy Center is a vital part of ministry in Tallahassee and receiving the gift of an ultrasound machine from the ERLC Psalm 139 Project greatly increases the effectiveness of ministering to some of the most vulnerable in our community. The Center is literally next door to Planned Parenthood, so the advancement of equipment and technology is essential for the flourishing of the center and their ministry. As a church we are thrilled to partner with both the ERLC and A Women’s Pregnancy Center.” 

Earlier this year, the Psalm 139 Project also placed an ultrasound machine at Care Net of Las Cruces in Las Cruces, New Mexico that is used to offer support and care for clients making a pregnancy choice for life. 

One hundred percent of financial contributions donated to the Psalm 139 Project go toward purchasing ultrasound machines and providing training for workers. Tax-deductible gifts may be made to ERLC, 901 Commerce Street, Nashville, Tenn., 37203. Learn more at psalm139project.com. 

Explainer: Executive Order to protect born-alive babies
By / Sep 29

President Trump signed an executive order that seeks to ensure that “infants born alive, no matter the circumstances of his or her birth, have the same dignity and the same rights as every other individual and are entitled to the same protections under Federal law.”

The “Executive Order on Protecting Vulnerable Newborn and Infant Children” clarifies several existing laws, including the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA), Section 504 of the Rehab Act and the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act to ensure born-alive babies in American hospitals are entitled to non-discriminatory access to medical care,with the consent of a parent or guardian, when they present at hospitals receiving Federal funds.

EMTALA ensures an individual’s access to emergency medical screening and stabilizing services, regardless of the ability to pay. The Executive Order clarifies thatE MTALA applies to all children, including those born prematurely, are born with a disability, or survive an abortion. It further clarifies Section 504 of the Rehab Act, which prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities by programs and activities receiving Federal funding. The Born-Alive Infants Protection Act makes clear that all infants born alive at any stage of development are considered persons for purposes of these and other federal laws and are, therefore, afforded the same legal protections as any other person.

Even though there are existing laws, some hospitals refuse to properly provide lifesaving medical care to babies who were born prematurely, with a disability or babies surviving an abortion. The Executive Order directs the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to “ensure that individuals responsible for all programs and activities under his jurisdiction that receive Federal funding are aware of their obligations toward infants, including premature infants or infants with disabilities, who have an emergency medical condition in need of stabilizing treatment, under EMTALA and section 504 of the Rehab Act, as interpreted consistent with the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act.”

The Office of Civil Rights at HHS has passed regulations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act to further clarify the protections, and have a complaint portal where the public can file a complaint if they believe that a child has not received proper medical care.

Why is this important?

Any measure that seeks to protect vulnerable born-alive babies ought to be applauded, because Christians affirm that every life, both unborn and born has inherent dignity and worth. We should celebrate when our laws protect all life. The majority of Americans support limits on abortion. According to a Marist poll, 70% of Americans would limit abortion to the first three months of pregnancy, or to a more stringent requirement. Nearly half of those who identify as pro-choice (47%) also support such restrictions. Labeling someone as “pro-choice” doesn’t clearly indicate how they view restrictions and limits on abortion and lumps everyone into the same category.  

What’s next?

This executive order is a positive announcement of administrative policy, yet, a permanent and legislative solution is needed. Congress should swiftly pass the Born Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act to ensure that every child, including those who survive attempted abortion, is fully protected under the law. This important bill would amend the federal criminal code to require any health care practitioner who is present when a child is born alive following an abortion or attempted abortion to, first, exercise the same degree of care as reasonably provided to any other child born alive at the same gestational age, and second, ensure that such a child is immediately admitted to a hospital.

The ERLC is committed to defending the vulnerable at every stage of life. Withholding medical care from an infant who was born alive denies the human dignity affirmed to them by God. Such a callous dereliction of responsibility by both the legal system and medical profession also denies that child’s basic human right of life as guaranteed by the United States Constitution.

Kimberly Kuo on cherishing life when given six months to live
By / May 7

After she and her husband David Kuo were in a car wreck late one Saturday night in 2003, Kimberly waited in the George Washington University Hospital for news of his condition. The newly married couple were at the top of their Washington careers at the time. David worked in the White House as a senior aide to President George W. Bush. Kimberly was an executive downtown having previously worked in the Senate as a top aide for Majority Leader Bob Dole. When David was finally wheeled out of the emergency room, he gave his wife a thumbs down. He was diagnosed with a brain tumor and given six months to live. Kimberly joined Jeff and Travis at the Leland House to share her family’s courageous story of living life to the fullest when battling a terminal illness and why physician-assisted suicide is not the answer for such a tragedy.

Guest Biography

Kimberly Kuo has over 25 years experience as a Communications and Marketing professional in national politics, federal government, corporations and start-ups. Her experience in politics includes time as Press Secretary for Senate Majority Leader and then presidential candidate Bob Dole and vice presidential candidate Jack Kemp. She currently serves as Senior Vice President of Public Affairs, Communications and Communities at Coca-Cola Consolidated. In addition to opinion pieces, she also writes music, poetry and children’s fiction. She loves writing for and teaching young kids at Forest Hill Church in Charlotte, N.C., and her greatest joy is adventuring with her two children.

Resources from the Conversation