An abortion ban bill introduced into the Ohio state legislature requires surgeons treating women for potentially fatal pregnancies located outside of the uterus to “reimplant” the pregnancy into the uterus or face “abortion murder” charges. However, there is no such thing as reimplanting an ectopic pregnancy. It is impossible because the fetal blood supply grows over time and grows into the tube or other site it is attached to. Moreover, a pregnancy will not attach to the uterus at this point in gestation because the uterus does not develop the vasculature to maintain a pregnancy when the egg implants ectopically. In fact, a growing tubal pregnancy will rupture the Fallopian tube if it is not treated medically or surgically. Tubal rupture is the leading cause of maternal mortality in the first trimester of pregnancy.
This proposed legislation would criminalize a medical procedure necessary to save a woman’s life under the pretense of saving a clump of cells that has zero chance of survival.
Practicing Obstetrician/Gynecologists (note my wife is an Ob hospitalist now) told Ohio legislators that “reimplanting” ectopic pregnancies is impossible the first time they introduced a similar bill. Again, Ob/Gyns are telling Ohio legislators that there is no such thing as reimplanting an ectopic.
Would doctors face the death penalty if these extreme “right to life” legislators get their way? The bill creates a new crime “aggravated abortion murder” punishable by death. Right to life, indeed.
www.theguardian.com/…
In addition to ordering doctors to do the impossible or face criminal charges, House Bill 413 bans abortion outright and defines a fertilized egg as an “unborn child”.
It also appears to punish doctors, women and children as young as 13 with “abortion murder” if they “perform or have an abortion”. This crime is punishable by life in prison. Another new crime, “aggravated abortion murder”, is punishable by death, according to the bill.
The bill is sponsored by representatives Candice Keller and Ron Hood, and co-sponsored by 19 members of Ohio’s 99-member House.
These extremist Ohio state legislators cannot make it possible to “reimplant” an ectopic any more than they can revoke the laws of physics but they can drive away physicians who care for women. At present there are more potential jobs for Ob/Gyns than there are doctors. A board certified Ob/Gyn can pick and chose from a number of good jobs in a number of desirable locations. I can assure you that we are not considering moving to Ohio and I would venture to say that physician recruitment in Ohio is becoming increasingly difficult.
“There is no procedure to reimplant an ectopic pregnancy,” said Dr Chris Zahn, vice-president of practice activities at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. “It is not possible to move an ectopic pregnancy from a fallopian tube, or anywhere else it might have implanted, to the uterus,” he said.
“Reimplantation is not physiologically possible. Women with ectopic pregnancies are at risk for catastrophic hemorrhage and death in the setting of an ectopic pregnancy, and treating the ectopic pregnancy can certainly save a mom’s life,” said Zahn.