MONTGOMERY — The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday gave a favorable report as amended to HB 237, State Rep. Ginny Shaver’s (R-Leesburg) “born-alive” bill that would be known as “Gianna’s Law.”
Shaver has introduced a version of this bill for three consecutive sessions.
The legislation is named after a survivor of an attempted abortion who now travels the world telling her story. Shaver has met the woman (Gianna Jessen) and called her an inspiration. The bill in 2019 passed the House, with Democrats in the chamber unanimously opposing the legislation. The legislation then stalled in the Senate over concerns from the medical community.
The state representative from Cherokee County introduced the bill last year, when the COVID-19 pandemic stopped it from advancing in the legislature.
The 2019 legislation was introduced by Shaver after the publicized rise of support for infanticide amongst national Democrats, especially following in the wake of statements by policymakers in New York and Virginia. Her current legislation would also purport to safeguard against infanticide by requiring a doctor to administer the same level of medical care to a child born alive after an abortion attempt as they would any other child.
Shaver has said, “There is no such thing as post-birth abortion. Think about those three words. That’s infanticide.”
“That’s what it is and what my bill does is in this situation where a child survives an abortion attempt and is born alive, it would require a physician to exercise the same reasonable care to preserve the life of the child that is born alive,” she continued. “When this happens, if there is any sign of breathing or any other sign of life … there would then exist a doctor-patient relationship between the doctor and the child so that he would be required to exercise the same degree of physical skill and care to make an effort to reasonably preserve the life and health of that child.”
Wednesday’s committee action came over the dissenting votes of Reps. Chris England (D-Tuscaloosa) and Merika Coleman (D-Birmingham), the chair of the Alabama Democratic Party and deputy leader of the House Minority Caucus, respectively.
Coleman remarked that she was trying to hold her tongue regarding her opposition to the bill.
“Because I know you’re going to pass it,” she added. “I can talk until doomsday, but I know what’s going to happen with it.”
The committee vote was not totally on party lines, as Rep. Prince Chestnut (D-Selma) voted to give the bill a favorable report.
Sean Ross is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
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