User:NastywomanMD/sandbox

Copied from abortion

In 2019, a US Senate Bill entitled the "Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act" garnered a great deal of attention to the issue of live birth after abortion despite live birth being an uncommon complication of abortion. The bill would mandate that medical providers resuscitate neonates delivered showing signs of life during an abortion process. During the debate around this issue, US Republicans alleged that medical providers "execute" babies although there are in fact existing US laws that would punish an execution as homicide, and US abortion experts refute the claim that a "born-alive" fetus is a common event and reject laws that would mandate resuscitation against the wishes of the parents.

Only 1.3% of abortions occur after 21 weeks of pregnancy. Although it is very uncommon, women undergoing surgical abortion after this gestational age sometimes give birth to a fetus that may survive briefly. The periviable period is considered to be between 20 to 25 weeks gestation. Long-term survival is possible after 22 weeks. However, odds of long-term survival between 22 and 23 weeks are 2-3 percent and odds of survival between 23 and 24 weeks are 20 percent. "Intact survival", which means survival of a neonate without subsequent damage to organs such as the brain or bowel is 1% at 22 weeks and 13% at 23 weeks. Survival odds increase with increasing gestational age.

If medical staff observe signs of life, they may be required to provide care: emergency medical care if the child has a good chance of survival and palliative care if not. Induced fetal demise before termination of pregnancy after 20–21 weeks gestation is recommended by some sources to avoid this and to comply with the US Partial Birth Abortion Ban. Induced fetal demise does not improve the safety of an abortion procedure and may incur risks to the health of the woman having the abortion.