Print Column: To Reduce Abortions, Perhaps Less Focus on Lectures and More on Birth Control
Are pro-life Republicans interested in creating headlines or reducing the number of abortions?
I’m pro-life, but I couldn’t help but be frustrated this week when the Republican majority in the North Dakota House of Representatives passed HB1336 on a 73-16 vote.
That bill, sponsored by Rep. Daniel Johnston (R-Kathryn), would add to the list of lectures women must receive when seeking an abortion.
Already our state’s informed consent statute requires that a woman be told about medical assistance benefits, adoption, the potential for child support if the child is born, and that she can withdraw her consent for the abortion at any time.
Johnston’s bill would also require the woman be told the effects of an abortion-inducing drug can possibly be reversed if she changes her mind about the abortion.
Someone contemplating an abortion should have all the information possible about the decision before them, but a list of lectures mandated by statute is patronizing to the point of being insulting.
