#385 Revisited

Dear AAPLOG Colleague, We try to keep you informed of abortion issues on the world scene, as well as on the USA scene. You will find these issues detailed on our home page (www.aaplog.org) under the categories American Issues, and under International Issues. In particular, the increasing attempt by world governing bodies and by certain NGO’s and other medically related groups to establish abortion on demand for every woman on the planet as a fundamental human right is evident and persistent—and pervasive. That would make us Hippocratic physicians unethical practitioners—deniers of basic ahuman right. It is chilling. To get you up to speed, take a quick re-look at the Nov 2007 ACOG Ethics Committee Opinion #385. As ObGyns, we should be very interested. It is, after all, our specialty, our practice, and our livelihood. For a copy, go to here. For AAPLOG’s response at that time, see https://www.aaplog.org/physician-conscience-rights/february-6-2008-the-aaplog-response-to-opinion-385/ Basically, #385 opines that we are ethically bound to meet the patient’s demand for abortion, at the very least by referring her to an abortionist, if we did not do abortions ourselves. AAPLOG specifically asked ACOG to reconsider and revise the opinion. They specifically reconsidered and did NOT revise. That was 2008. What about now? Here is an observation from one of our board members (on the 3rd anniversary of Ethics Committee Opinion #385): “I noticed a little blurb at the back of the November Green Journal stating that ACOG Committee Opinion 385 (The Limits of Conscientious Refusal in Reproductive Medicine) has been REAFFIRMED by ACOG without any change. They remain obstinate on this, despite all protests. I do not believe they have changed one word since it was released in 2007. By the way, I never really noticed that in the title they used the word “Refusal.” This word tends to have a pejorative sense when used in the sentence the way they have used it. There are many other ways they could have phrased this but I think this was clearly intentional as a slap at those who exercise their right of conscience with regard to abortion. . .” AAPLOG note: do not be lulled to sleep. These people are coming after our conscience rights. AAPLOG exists to defend our conscience rights, as well as to protect women’s health, and to uphold the right of unborn babies to not be intentionally killed in their mother’s womb.