South Carolina Committee Passes Pro-Life Bill to Ban Abortions After 20 Weeks

State   |   Holly Gatling   |   Jan 23, 2015   |   10:10AM   |   Columbia, SC

On Thursday, January 22, 2015, the 42nd anniversary of the lethal Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion, a S.C. House panel voted to create a new, compelling state interest in limiting abortion when an unborn child can feel pain.

Called the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (H3114) the measure won 5-0 unanimous bi-partisan support after the S.C. House Judiciary Subcommittee on General and Family Law heard testimony from three local pro-life physicians and accepted written statements from other expert supporters who could not attend.

Voting in favor of the bill were subcommittee Chairman Peter McCoy, R-Charleston, Anne Thayer, R-Anderson, Kirkman Finlay, R-Richland, Donna Hicks, R-Spartanburg, and Joe McEachern, D-Richland. The bill now moved on the full House Judiciary Committee scheduled to meet Tuesday afternoon.

Dr. Stuart Hamilton, M.D., a Columbia University trained pediatrician and long-time supporter of pro-life legislation, described fetal development for members of the committee. He said he agrees with scientific research demonstrating the unborn child can feel pain at 20 weeks after fertilization.

ultrasound4d13“There is evidence for the probable appreciation of pain by 20 weeks gestation after fertilization,” Dr. Hamilton told the subcommittee. “Anatomically at 20 weeks, the examination of the nervous system displays the appropriate tracks in the central nervous system and the peripheral nerve fibers that are designed to transmit and carry pain impulses.” He went on to explain that at the age of 16 weeks, the baby’s body shows “substantial neurological maturation.” Even at 12 weeks, he said, “The immature constituents of these pathways are clearly visible with magnification.”

A father-son team of physicians also spoke in favor of the bill. Dr. Tom Austin, M.D., a retired neonatologist, and former director of Neonatology at the USC School of Medicine, defined pain as “a noxious insult that one attempts to avoid or repel.” In his practice he treated babies prematurely born at 18 to 22 weeks. “They did show response to stimuli,” he said. “They would respond, move, recoil.”

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His son, also Dr. Tom Austin, M.D, is an obstetrician-gynocologist who practices in the Columbia area.  He described his experience with delivering pre-mature infants. “I agree with my father. You can see the baby is trying to live.” He also criticized the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a national organization that supports abortion-on-demand. He described ACOG as being closely tied to Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion business. Dr. Austin said he is not affiliated with ACOG and instead has joined the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

South Carolina Citizens for Life, the state affiliate of the National Right to Life Committee which developed the model pain-capable legislation, the Catholic Diocese of Charleston, the South Carolina Baptist Convention, the Palmetto Family Council, and the North Greenville Christian World View Center are among the organizations supporting the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.

Calls now need to be made to members of the S.C. House Judiciary Committee to support passage of H 3114 without amendment.

If you are a constituent of any of these Judiciary Committee members, please contact them and urge them to support H 3114, the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.

LifeNews Note: Holly Gatling is the executive director for South Carolina Citizens for Life.