Federal Abortion Ban

I don't believe in late term (partial birth) abortions as a form of birth control, but for women who might be at health risk - risk of death - to not be given the choice to save their own lives seems just as criminal. To read more on this issue click the title of this post. I guess I don't understand why this law couldn't be passed with a clause of some kind that factors in the possibility of abortion being required to save a woman's life.

UPDATED: I just learned the following from Bitch Ph.D..

"The law allows for IDX to be performed to save a woman's life--but not to save, say, her uterus. Because there are other surgical options for late-term abortions, it is highly unlikely that banning IDX will prevent a single abortion. It may, however, prevent some women from having the safest procedure for their particular circumstances."

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U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Federal Abortion Ban

Law Threatens Women's Health; Criminalizes Safe, Early Abortions

April 18, 2007

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Supreme Court today upheld the federal abortion ban in the cases Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood and Gonzales v. Carhart. The ban, passed by Congress and signed by President Bush in 2003, criminalizes abortions in the second trimester of pregnancy that doctors say are safe and the best to protect women's health. Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) denounced today's ruling.

"This ruling flies in the face of 30 years of Supreme Court precedent and the best interest of women's health and safety," said PPFA Deputy Director of Litigation and Law Eve Gartner, who argued Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood. "Today the court took away an important option for doctors who seek to provide the best and safest care to their patients. This ruling tells women that politicians, not doctors, will make their health care decisions for them."

"Today's decision is a shocking setback for women's health," added Gartner. As Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said in her dissent, '...the Court deprives women of the right to make an autonomous choice, even at the expense of their safety.'