The “born alive” legislation is one of a number of anti-abortion measures that is likely to get a vote in the new Republican-controlled House. House Republicans also promised quick votes on a proposal to permanently ban federal funding for abortions or for health care plans that cover most abortions. The Democrat-controlled Senate is unlikely to take up any measures that would restrict abortion, meaning it would not become law.
“It’s an entirely fabricated political concept. This idea is not something that really exists in medicine the way it is described in these bills,” said Jen Villavicencio, an Washington D.C.-based OB-GYN who works with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. She highlighted that these circumstances — in which an infant is born after an attempted abortion — are “really, really rare.” In instances where they occur, the situation may be the result of a late miscarriage or an abortion attempted to save the life of the pregnant patient.