GOP Lawmakers Say ‘Born Alive’ Bill Shows Newborns That Survive Abortions Are ‘Deserving of Medical Care’

Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) and other Congressional members hold a press conference on Jan. 11, 2023, in a still image from video released by NTD. NTD

Reps. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) and Beth Van Duyne (R-Texas) shared their support of a bill that passed in the House on Jan. 9, dubbed the “Born Alive” act, which requires medical practitioners to provide medical care for babies born after an attempted abortion.

The bill, titled the “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act” (pdf), would “prohibit a health care practitioner from failing to exercise the proper degree of care in the case of a child who survives an abortion or attempted abortion.”The bill on Wednesday before the House passed it on a 220-210 vote, followed by the passage of a resolution that condemned acts of arson and vandalism against pro-life organizations.

“The idea that we would have a child that would because of a botched abortion and be born alive, and then they would not receive proper medical care is soul-crushing and across America, there are all kinds of people who, even if they believe in abortion rights, they know that that baby is deserving of medical care,” Johnson told NTD News.

“That’s what the Republican House is going to say with a clear voice today that that is a human being that is worthy of protection and worthy of the appropriate medical care,” Johnson added.

The bill passed in the House with the support of 219 Republicans and one Democrat, Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar, voted in favor of the bill. On Wednesday, the House also passed a resolution condemning acts of arson and vandalism against facilities operated by pro-life organizations.

While the “Born Alive” bill passed in the House, it is likely to face tougher odds in the Democrat-controlled Senate. In 2019, Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Nebr.) introduced a similar bill to the Senate in 2019, but the bill failed to garner the 60 votes needed to overcome a Senate filibuster. Sasse’s 2019 bill did garner support from three Senate Democrats, CBS reported at the time.

“Last session, what you saw was nearly every single Democrat, voted in support of having abortion on demand up until the moment of birth,” Van Duyne said. “I think what we’re trying to do is set the the tables right again, let it be known where we do stand on abortion, where we stand on life. And I think it’s the timeliness of finally getting into the majority to be able to have something like this pass after seeing some of the monstrous bills that passed last Congress, I think it’s important for the American people that they recognize that we actually do appreciate and do on focus on life.”

Republicans Say Bill Gives Women a Voice

In addition to providing a standard of care to newborns that survive an abortion, the “Born Alive” bill also requires hospitals to report violations to law enforcement authorities, and penalizes the intentional killing of a born-alive child through fines or up to 5 years imprisonment.

The bill also states that a mother of a newborn that survives an abortion may not be prosecuted under the bill. The legislation also creates a cause of action for the mother of an abortion survivor to sue an abortion provider.

“I think we’re trying to give women a voice,” Van Duyne said of the protections in the bill for mothers of newborns that survive an abortion.

“And if they do feel threatened in any way, they should be able to have a consequence, and have an ability to be able to go and seek protection and to seek support,” she added.

Johnson said the “Born Alive” bill is “not just a messaging bill.”

“This is something that is thoughtful, it’s deliberate, it tries to make sure that we have the appropriate resources to mothers who need additional care,” Johnson said.

Abortion Group Calls Republican Measures ‘Extremist’

NARAL Pro-Choice America condemned the House votes to pass the “Born Alive” bill and the resolution condemning attacks on pro-life groups, calling the votes an “assault on abortion.”

“Once again, Democrats are fighting for our reproductive freedom and the 8 in 10 Americans who support the legal right to abortion, while Republicans are doubling down on their anti-choice extremist values,” NARAL Pro-Choice America President Mini Timmaraju said in a press statement.

NARAL Pro-Choice America said the “Born Alive” bill would “interfere in personal family decisions” while the resolution condemning attacks on pro-life groups is “meant to muddy the waters and detract from the GOP’s extremely unpopular anti-reproductive freedom agenda.”

Johnson rejected the premise that the “Born Alive” bill represents an extreme restriction on abortion.

“Let’s remember the facts that we’re talking about here. A child has been born alive. Its heart is beating, its eyes are blinking. It has breath. It is there in a medical facility with medical professionals who can save its life. Taking care of that baby is not extreme. It is basic human dignity,” he said.

Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-Texas) also argued against the idea that the “Born Alive” bill represents an extreme position, arguing instead that supporting abortion up to the moment of birth represents the more extreme position.

“Last Congress we saw the most extreme nature of Democrats, when you agree to the abortion of a baby up until the moment of birth, that’s extreme,” Van Duyne told NTD News ahead of the House vote. “What we’re saying is let’s set the expectations that we do support life, that we do value life.”

House Republican, South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace, expressed some concern about the messaging of the bill before its passage.

“It’s tone-deaf at this point. It’s never going to pass the Senate. It’s never going to get to the president’s desk to be signed into law,” Mace said Tuesday, NBC reported. “We’re only paying lip service to the pro-life movement. If you want to make a difference and reduce the number of abortions with a Democrat-controlled Senate, the No. 1 issue we should be working on is access to birth control.”

Mace said the majority of voters in her district opposed the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion case. Despite her stated concerns, Mace voted in favor of the bill on Wednesday.