Starting July, it will be illegal for babies to be aborted on the basis of having Down Syndrome after Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed into law a bill protecting unborn children with the genetic condition.
Physician Gyn Christina Francis said down syndrome or permanent disability compels around 75 percent of parents to consider abortion, reports World News Service.
"Every part of this bill really plays to supporting the dignity of human life," she said, adding that the law also seeks to hold medical practitioners to a higher standard.
Under the new law, physicians or abortionists can be held liable for wrongful death if it is proven that they facilitated the abortion based on the baby's disability, gender, race or physical characteristics, and gives unborn babies civil rights that protect them from discrimination.
The new law will also compel doctors to provide clearer information to women about their pregnancies and increase their responsibilities to their patients. While doctors could be charged for terminating pregnancies on grounds of disability, the women will not be held responsible for the baby's death.
The state currently considers abortions legal but only until a 20 week gestation period. Down Syndrome tests could be performed on the babies as early as 10 weeks.
"When it comes to genetics, it's easy for us to say 'if it isn't perfect let's abort.' I have had the opportunity to meet many families with Down syndrome children. Yes, they have an extra chromosome, but there is something truly special about them. I think these kids have an extra love gene," said Len Reynolds, the president of Indiana Right to Life's Lake County affiliate.
