Abortion

1 Abortion A spontaneous abortion – also referred to as a miscarriage – often results without a woman’s intervention. On the other hand, a procured abortion occurs where a woman has intentionally sought out the abortion. Due to the fact that intentionality lies at the heart of both spontaneous and procured abortion, the two typically have certain ethical implications.

As Joffe (2019) notes, miscarriage is often an involuntary loss. Thus, ethically, the person who undergoes a miscarriage cannot be said to have interfered with the life of a new-born.

On the other hand, in light of the fact that a procured abortion is voluntary, one could be held to be morally reprehensible because they are, in effect, interfering with the right that another person has of existing.

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2 Essentially, an abortifacient is a substance that causes or induces abortion. For this reason, contraceptive pills, the IUD, and the morning after pill can all be said to abortifacients. This is because, if one argues that the beginning of life is at fertilization, then these contraception methods interfere with fertilization in a manner that can be said to be interference with human life (Joffe, 2019). These contraception methods either inhibit fertilization, inhibit the movement of sperm, or develop a hostile endometrium which either prevents or disrupts the implantation of the developing baby.

There are different types of abortion methods, depending on the stage of a baby’s development. Abortion by methotrexate and misoprostol usually happens in the first seven weeks and uses cancer drugs to stop embryo cells from multiplying (Joffe, 2019). In the first twelve weeks, vacuum aspiration is typically used. This process involves using gentle suction to suck the foetus out of the placenta. In the second trimester of pregnancy, dilation and evacuation are the methods that are utilized. This procedure is a combination of vacuum aspiration, the use of forceps, and the application of dilation and cutterage. Finally, an induction abortion typically occurs during the second trimester. This method involves the use of specialized medicine that puts the woman into labor.

In Roe v. Wade, a pregnant single woman instituted a class suit contesting the extent to which the Texas criminal abortion laws could be said to be constitutional (Joffe, 2019).

The US Supreme Court held that the country’s Constitution protects a woman’s liberty to choose to have an abortion without facing excessive restriction from the state. Norma McCorvey was a poor and uneducated woman who lacked the means to travel out of state for an abortion. Even though she championed for abortion, she did not undergo the procedure.

There are three main alternatives to abortion. The first is legal guardianship, where one places a child with a member of the family (Joffe, 2019). The second alternative is adoption. Here, one goes through with the pregnancy and then provides another family the

3 opportunity to raise the child. The third alternative is co-parenting. If one does not want to shoulder the responsibilities of parenting alone, then they can explore how they can raise the child with the other parent.

Paragraph 45 of the Ethical and Religious Directives (ERD) prohibits any form of abortion (Guiahi, 2018). It also prohibits Catholic health care providers from providing abortion services. Paragraph 46 states that Catholic health care providers should be available to offer care to people who have suffered the trauma of abortion. Paragraph 47 provides that Catholic health care providers may offer critical medical care even at the risk of inadvertently terminating pregnancies. Paragraph 48 provides that, in the case of an extraurine pregnancy, procuring a direct abortion will be prohibited. Under paragraph 49, labor may be induced in the case that a fetus is viable. Paragraph 50 provides that prenatal diagnosis is prohibited if it is undertaken to induce the abortion of an unborn child. Paragraph 51 provides that nontherapeutic experiments on unborn children are not permitted. Paragraph 66 prohibits the use of human tissue obtained by direct abortions to aid research.

4 References Guiahi, M. (2018). Catholic health care and women's health. Obstetrics & Gynecology, 131(3), 534-537. https://doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000002477 Joffe, C. (2019). Abortion Politics (Vol. 48, No. 6, pp. 686-688). Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications.