Court: Tennessee can enforce Down syndrome abortion ban

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By KIMBERLEE KRUESI

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A federal appeals court ruled Friday that Tennessee can begin outlawing abortions because of a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome, as well as prohibit the procedure if it’s based on the race or gender of the fetus.

Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Lee enacted the so-called “reason bans” earlier this year as part of a sweeping anti-abortion measure. The law gained national attention because it banned abortion as early as six weeks — making it one of the strictest in the country — but it included several other anti-abortion components.

The law was immediately blocked by a lower federal court just hours after Lee signed it into law.

However, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision will allow the state to enforce the reason bans while abortion rights groups continue their court battle against that law.



FILE - In this Nov. 10, 2020, file photo, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee speaks with reporters in Nashville, Tenn. A federal appeals court ruled Friday, Nov. 20, 2020, that Tennessee can begin outlawing abortions because of a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome, as well prohibit the procedure if it is based on the race or gender of the fetus. Earlier this year, Lee enacted the so-called “reason bans” as part of a sweeping anti-abortion measure that he signed earlier this year. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/tennessee-down-syndrome-courts-6c95681e7c7dfc8d2d94a0ee4a7723c2

[bucolic_frolic]

1. Republicans are in your wallet, your bedroom, your mind, and your body

You don't own you. Republicans do.

[iluvtennis]

22. Exactly. And then they don't want to provide funds for specialized health care and education. nt

[Iggo]

27. And that is the OPPOSITE of conservative.

Explain it to the young ones. The old ones are lost causes.

[Freddie]

2. How are they going to find out?

Cross-check your regular OB’s records? They’re that evil, they will. Repugs are all for “freedom” except when they want to control your most personal and private decisions.

[heckles65]

10. That was my thought too.

[cab67]

11. but how would they demonstrate cause?

That a diagnosis was made doesn't necessarily mean that the diagnosis was the reason for the abortion.

I think this is a terrible law, but I really don't see how it's enforceable.

[CTyankee]

20. My guess is that they really only care about anything but the endgame, whittle away at Roe until

it exists but it doesn't matter because it's in tatters, a "right" in name only.

[Ms. Toad]

33. It's likely written so that an abortion after Down's sydrome diagnosis

triggers a presumption that that was the reason for the abortion, shifting the burdent to the woman to prove otherwise.

[marble falls]

3. Dupe post, Steve. You beat yourself to it!

[Omaha Steve]

7. Fixed it

The system does that to me some times.

[marble falls]

18. Me, too. It's only in the last month and in my case I suspect I've worn my mouse mouse out ...

... and it's been double-clicking hast enough the system isn't catching my "duplicate post".

[Hekate]

4. Federal appeals court? Well, it's on its way to the SCOTUS....

Women just can’t be trusted to be in charge of our own health care, at all, at all.

[mdbl]

5. Does Tennessee have a system for supporting people with Down Syndrome

They will need to make sure these people will be taken care of, since they have become their custodians.

[pazzyanne]

8. That was one of my questions as well.

The other questions include:

1) People with Down Syndrome have serious medical conditions that require medical interventions. What medical insurance is available in Tennessee?

2) Children with Down Syndrome need special education classes. Are they available in Tennessee?

3) Special services and programs are required for daily living skills, work place needs, adequate living options, and the list goes on.

Does Tennessee have these options to support children with Down Syndrome and their families? If they do not, it is simply irresponsible!

[area51]

9. +1

Since healthcare in this country is considered a luxury, the govt. has no business forcing pregnancies being carried to term.

[pazzyanne]

15. Did a little research on the Tenneessee HHS website, and this is what I came away with:

The primary responsibility is the parent/ family's. Specific programs for children with special needs are not addressed on the website except in vague terms.

[deurbano]

21. And those families will need direct support (financial and otherwise) because in the

successful situations, someone in that family (usually the mom) will likely be cutting back on or entirely leaving outside employment to locate/coordinate/supervise the appropriate interventions and supports, and that may last until the kid reaches adulthood... or even the rest of the mom's life. So, that's the loss of one salary (IF there are two parents, both working...and the situation obviously becomes a million times more overwhelming for a single parent), in addition to other financial and other costs. (And rewards.)

[pazzyanne]

23. Exactly! nt

[Tiger8]

19. Your questions require thinking....

Thinking is something Republicans are not good at. They can react and follow orders, but to consider the consequences is something they can't do.

[DENVERPOPS]

30. Are you kidding......Tennessee???????

[JI7]

38. This is about controlling women, not about supporting people stork ds

[Algernon Moncrieff]

12. An interesting read on the topic, generally

The Atlantic: The Last Children of Down Syndrome

We sat down at a café, and Grete gave her phone to Karl Emil to busy himself with while we spoke in English. He took selfies; his mother, sister, and I began to talk about Down syndrome and the country’s prenatal-screening program. At one point, Grete was reminded of a documentary that had sparked an outcry in Denmark. She reclaimed her phone to look up the title: Død Over Downs (“Death to Down Syndrome”). When Karl Emil read over her shoulder, his face crumpled. He curled into the corner and refused to look at us. He had understood, obviously, and the distress was plain on his face.

Grete looked up at me: “He reacts because he can read.”

“He must be aware of the debate?” I asked, which felt perverse to even say. So he’s aware there are people who don’t want people like him to be born? Yes, she said; her family has always been open with him. As a kid, he was proud of having Down syndrome. It was one of the things that made him uniquely Karl Emil. But as a teenager, he became annoyed and embarrassed. He could tell he was different. “He actually asked me, at some point, if it was because of Down syndrome that he sometimes didn’t understand things,” Grete said. “I just told him honestly: Yes.” As he’s gotten older, she said, he’s made his peace with it. This arc felt familiar. It’s the arc of growing up, in which our self-assuredness as young children gets upended in the storms of adolescence, but eventually, hopefully, we come to accept who we are.

The decisions parents make after prenatal testing are private and individual ones. But when the decisions so overwhelmingly swing one way—to abort—it does seem to reflect something more: an entire society’s judgment about the lives of people with Down syndrome. That’s what I saw reflected in Karl Emil’s face.

[pnwmom]

29. This is an appeal to people's heartstrings. It still should be up to the woman.

To say that you can't have a "reason" for an abortion -- but you CAN abort a fetus that is perfectly healthy -- makes no sense. It's just a legal step on the way to banning them all.

[SunSeeker]

31. Exactly. nt

[Nay]

36. Entirely agree, and the court is crazy to say Down's fetuses can't be aborted when your

reason is "I don't want a kid, Down's or not."

If the Supreme Court agrees with this nonsense, we're in real trouble. I don't think it will.

[roamer65]

13. Travel to states like IL is going to become the norm.

That moron Lee needs to be punched in the face.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

16. It'll be the norm for women with the means to travel.

These restrictions only apply to the indigent. Anyone with money has alternatives.

[roamer65]

28. Are there any charities who are going to fund the travel expenses?

I definitely will give.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

34. Don't know. I give to Planned Parenthood, ...

... and bumped up the donation this year because Trump / Rethugs are de-funding.

[Fla Dem]

14. These are the same people who vehemently refuse to wear masks because the gov't

has no control over what they do with their bodies. Hypocrisy at it's best.

[McCamy Taylor]

17. How would they know why it is being done?

[RobinA]

25. It Doesn't Matter

This will cause doctors to be unwilling to abort any fetus with Down for fear of being arrested. This kind of thing makes me want to punch somebody in the face. Hard. Freedom my ass.

[KWR65]

24. The Republican Strategy of outlawing abortion by a thousand cuts is working.

[ChazII]

26. This is a very informative article

and I appreciate your posting it.

[Polybius]

32. Is appealing to the Supreme Court worth it?

They are almost certain to let it stand.

[andym]

35. Conservatives will surely appeal this decision quickly

to make sure it reaches the Supreme Court (even though they are in favor of the law), so they can get the Supreme Court's seal of approval.

[TexasBushwhacker]

37. I hope the Republicans that voted for this

all plan on on adopting the Down Syndrome babies given up for adoption.