May. 08, 2019
HARRISBURG – Two pro-life bills championed by State House Health Committee Chairman Kathy Rapp (R-Warren/Crawford/Forest) are moving forward this week.
On Monday morning, for the second consecutive session, Rapp convened a voting meeting to advance legislation to the House floor that would prohibit the abortion of any child due solely to a diagnosis of possible Down syndrome (House Bill 321).
“Tragically in Iceland, abortion supporters callously brag about eliminating children with Down syndrome, and mothers from around the world are being directly pressured or advised to make this decision by genetic counselors and their culture,” said Rapp. “Final passage of
House Bill 321 would bring an end to this genocidal philosophy in Pennsylvania, which is unconscionably being advanced by Planned Parenthood, the world’s largest abortion provider. There is simply no justifiable or convenient excuse for aborting any unborn child diagnosed with Down syndrome.”
Watch Rapp’s comments on House Bill 321 before the House Health Committee.
Rapp also emphasized that House Bill 321 contains no restrictions on a mother obtaining an abortion in cases of rape, incest or personal endangerment.
Later on Monday, Rapp’s Compassion and Care for Medically Challenging Pregnancies Act (House Bill 1058) that would require information to be given to a mother on the option of perinatal care after she is diagnosed with a life-threatening fetal anomaly was approved 116-76 by the Pennsylvania House.
Under
House Bill 1058, the Pennsylvania Department of Health would be responsible for making this information available, which would include a list of perinatal care programs in the Commonwealth.
Watch Rapp’s floor remarks before the House vote on House Bill 1058.
Perinatal care is a model of support for parents who choose to continue their pregnancies following a prenatal diagnosis indicating that the unborn child has a life-limiting condition and might die before or shortly after birth. Perinatal care is offered from the time of diagnosis through the baby’s birth and death.
“As prenatal screening and diagnostic methods continue to advance and increasingly more life-threatening anomalies are being detected in earlier stages of pregnancy, more families are finding themselves in this heartbreaking situation,” said Rapp. “House Bill 1058 has nothing to do with abortion and would simply require information to be given to a woman on the option of perinatal care.”
House Bill 1058 now advances to the Senate for consideration. Minnesota became the first state to enact a provision for perinatal care in 2005, with five other states—Kansas, Arizona, Oklahoma, Mississippi and Indiana—following shortly thereafter. Several other states are considering similar proposals.
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Representative Kathy Rapp
65th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Ty McCauslin
717.772.9979
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