By Grazie Pozo Christie
Virginia, Rhode Island and Massachusetts legislators are all rushing to follow New York’s passage of the Reproductive Health Act by proposing similar bills — ones that would legalize abortion right up to birth. Virginia Governor Ralph Northam (D) expressed his support of the Virginia abortion proposal and unpacked exactly what it would allow.
He said, “So in this particular example if a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen, the infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.”
Although Northam called the withholding of medical assistance “comfort care”, it would be anything but comfortable for the infant. The child could be struggling for breath, turning blue and crying feebly as he or she dies. And though Northam deflected criticism by saying he was referring only to non-viable or severely deformed “fetuses” the fact that he is describing a born alive infant is clear — otherwise there would be no discussion of resuscitation.
