Partial Birth Abortion

Many pro-choice advocates believed that if partial-birth abortion became illegal then all abortion procedures would become illegal. Partial birth abortion is a procedure where the intact fetus is removed from the uterus and aborted. This theory however, was disproved in 2003 when the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act was enacted. This meant usually that an abortion that occured by this means in the 2nd trimester would be illegal. The U.S. Supreme Court later upheld this ruling in 2007 by saying that Partial Birth Abortions were unconstitutional because it involved intact dilation and extraction of the fetus from the uterus.

Our current president, Barack Obama, voted against a Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act in 2001, and has said on many occasions that he stands by this vote. Many health care reforms that are trying to be passed now include coverage for abortion, as I have mentioned in previous posts. Many pro-life supporters fear that this much support for abortion by a president will bring back partial birth abortions. This would increase the number of abortions that occur. For the most part, Democratic representatives in Congress are opposed to partial birth abortions. However, the pro-choice supporters that are against this procedure need to work together with the pro-life supporters to ensure that this procedure remains illegal.