Supreme Court Rules on Abortion
Meghan Fitzpatrick
Issue date: 5/2/07 Section: News
On April 18th, the United States Supreme Court ruled that it is illegal for doctors to perform a medical procedure that is commonly called partial-birth abortion. The 5-to-4 decision may be the most significant decision since the 1973 Roe v. Wade court case that legalized abortion.
The decision upheld the federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban passed by Congress in 2003. President Bush signed the law, but three lower courts had blocked the ban because of the lack of consideration for special circumstances.
The Supreme Court reviewed the case Gonzalez v. Carhart, in which four doctors challenged the 2003 ban because it did not allow for a special exception when the health of the mother is in jeopardy.
The more technical term for partial birth abortion is intact dilation and extraction. To do this a doctor partially extracts the fetus and then collapses the skull. The procedure is done when the fetus is 20 weeks or older. The procedure is used in approximately 0.17 percent of all abortions.
Opponents of the decision fear this is the first step toward making all types of abortions illegal. Some doctors are especially concerned because no exceptions will be considered even when a woman's health is at stake.
One of the four dissenters, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said the court's decision "deprives women of the right to make an autonomous choice, even at the expense of their safety."
Proponents of the decision believe partial birth abortion is the equivalent of murder.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote that the ban promoted "respect for life, including life of the unborn."
President Bush wrote in a statement, "The Supreme Court's decision is an affirmation of the progress we have made over the past six years in protecting human dignity and upholding the sanctity of life. We will continue to work for the day when every child is welcomed in life and protected in law. "
This Supreme Court decision does not mark the beginning of the abortion debate and most certainly does not mark the end.
The decision upheld the federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban passed by Congress in 2003. President Bush signed the law, but three lower courts had blocked the ban because of the lack of consideration for special circumstances.
The Supreme Court reviewed the case Gonzalez v. Carhart, in which four doctors challenged the 2003 ban because it did not allow for a special exception when the health of the mother is in jeopardy.
The more technical term for partial birth abortion is intact dilation and extraction. To do this a doctor partially extracts the fetus and then collapses the skull. The procedure is done when the fetus is 20 weeks or older. The procedure is used in approximately 0.17 percent of all abortions.
Opponents of the decision fear this is the first step toward making all types of abortions illegal. Some doctors are especially concerned because no exceptions will be considered even when a woman's health is at stake.
One of the four dissenters, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said the court's decision "deprives women of the right to make an autonomous choice, even at the expense of their safety."
Proponents of the decision believe partial birth abortion is the equivalent of murder.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote that the ban promoted "respect for life, including life of the unborn."
President Bush wrote in a statement, "The Supreme Court's decision is an affirmation of the progress we have made over the past six years in protecting human dignity and upholding the sanctity of life. We will continue to work for the day when every child is welcomed in life and protected in law. "
This Supreme Court decision does not mark the beginning of the abortion debate and most certainly does not mark the end.
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