American College of Pediatricians:
Born Alive Executive Order Benefits Our Most Vulnerable Children
24 September 2020
Media Contact:
Quentin Van Meter, MD, FCP, President
admin@acpeds.org
(352) 376-1877
The American College of Pediatricians (ACPeds) applauds President Trump’s announcement that he will sign a Born Alive Executive Order “to ensure that all precious babies born alive, no matter their circumstances, receive the medical care that they deserve.” Once signed, this Executive Order will protect all babies who are born prematurely, including those born alive after a failed elective abortion. The Order will also increase funding for neonatal research.
According to an analysis conducted by the Family Research Council, only eight states require reporting infants who survive an elective abortion. Despite this, over 300 cases have been documented of infants being born alive after an abortion attempt who were then either left to die or killed. This documentation lays to rest the claim that infanticide is not taking place and that current laws offer adequate protection.
Twenty-two states allow elective abortions after viability either directly or indirectly: Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wyoming. Among these, thirteen have no protections for born alive abortion survivors, including Illinois and New York, which repealed born-alive protections in 2019.
As our statement “When Human Life Begins” discusses, the predominance of human biological research confirms that human life begins at the moment of fertilization. From conception, the human zygote is an individual, genetically distinct, living and growing human being. As physicians dedicated to both science and the ancient medical ethics principle of “first do no harm”, the ACPeds values all human lives equally from the moment of conception until natural death. Consistent with its mission to “enable all children to reach their optimal physical and emotional health and well-being”, the ACPeds, therefore, opposes active measures that end the life of any child at any stage of development from conception forward including elective abortion and infanticide.
Executive Director of the ACPeds, Dr. Michelle Cretella stated, “This scientific and ethical position of the American College of Pediatricians is in stark contrast to that of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) which supports the availability of elective abortion procedures for pregnant adolescents even without parental consent.”
Dr. Cretella further contrasts the ACPeds with the AAP in this video for those who wish to learn more.
Resources
All Resources by the American College of Pediatricians (ACPeds) on Life Matters
About the American College of Pediatricians
The American College of Pediatricians (ACPeds) is a national medical association of licensed physicians and healthcare professionals who specialize in the care of infants, children, and adolescents. It was founded by a group of concerned physicians who saw the need for a pediatric organization that would not be influenced by the politically driven pronouncements of the day. The mission of the ACPeds is to enable all children to reach their optimal physical and emotional health and well-being. The ACPeds is committed to fulfilling its mission by producing sound policy, based upon the best available research, to assist parents and to influence society in the endeavor of childrearing.