Posted on 02/13/2007 12:58:18 PM PST by SmithL
NASHVILLE — Tennessee would collect death certificates for aborted fetuses under a bill introduced in the General Assembly.
Rep. Stacey Campfield said his bill would provide a way to track how many abortions are performed in Tennessee. The measure would also likely create public records on which women are having abortions.
"All these people who say they are pro-life — at least we would see how many lives are being ended out there by abortions," said Campfield, R-Knoxville.
The measure would give abortion providers 10 days following an "induced termination of a pregnancy" to file a death certificate with the state Office of Vital Records.
"Hopefully we’ll be able to get a little information out of this," Campfield said.
Campfield acknowledged his bill might have a hard time making it through the Democratic-controlled House. But the Republican-controlled Senate "will probably pass it," he said.
House Judiciary Chairman Rob Briley, D-Nashville, called Campfield’s proposal "the most preposterous bill I’ve seen in eight years in the Legislature."
"I would anticipate that there are some serious legal problems with trying to issue death certificates to unborn fetuses, whether they be aborted or not," Briley said.
"It is totally inconsistent with everything the law contemplates as it relates to anything close to that subject," he said. "It’s so far out there, it’s hard for me to comment."
Tennessee law already requires abortions to be reported to the Office of Vital Records, though the identities of women having abortions are not included in the reports. Death certificates require identifying information like Social Security numbers.
The anti-abortion group Tennessee Right to Life has not yet taken a position on the death certificate bill, said spokeswoman Myra Simons.
"It’s a little too early to say whether we will support it," she said, but added that the organization applauds the sponsors’ efforts to "draw attention to the way abortion is handled in Tennessee.
Officials with Planned Parenthood and the state Department of Health, which oversees the Office of Vital Records, didn’t immediately return calls seeking reaction.
Campfield said he’s not aware of similar proposals being introduced in other states. Still, he said, it’s worth the attempt.
"The life issue is very important, it’s always been very important to me," he said. "And we’ve really hit a stone wall as far as any sort of (anti-abortion) legislation moving."
Briley was less charitable about Campfield’s proposal.
"It’s a huge waste of taxpayer money for us to even be contemplating it," he said.
On the surface a good idea but it opens right to privacy issues.
Nothing like a dose of reality - unless, of course, you continue to deny reality...........
I wish I could have gotten a death certificate for my son, who was born premature at 19 weeks and 5 days. Because he wasn't "viable," he didn't count, even though I wanted him dearly.
It doesn't matter, because it will never pass.
A Democrat complaining about wasting taxpayer money?
It must be snowing in Hell.
Here's the translation of that statement...
"This law will show what a double standard we have for the unborn and what abortion is really all about."
Just guessing, but is Rob related to ex-mayor Berverly Briley?
Pro-life ping
Pro-life ping.
Just so you know. This is an excellant idea. Will it get anywhere? Heck no, but it exposes the hypocrisy of the pro-abortion crowd.
In many states death certificates must be issued after twenty weeks, whether the baby was aborted or stillborn.
Mrs VS
This is just going to piss off the libertarian wing as well as give the leftist lunatics the ability to say 'See, these are the crazy people we are protecting you from!!!'. And everybody in the middle of the argument is going to be siding with them. The intent isn't bad here but the execution is going to be disasterous. Since this is only a PR stunt, its going to create an enormous fundraiser opportunity for the abortion industry and we'll get nothing out of it on our side when we are defeated.
My first thought was, "this is thinking outside the box."
Please FreepMail me if you want on or off my Pro-Life Ping List.
Is there an exception for "spontaneous abortions" in this bill?
That is the clinical definition of a "miscarriage".
I had five of them.
Would it make you feel better if you could "shame me" for them?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1306761/posts
Harvesting Fetal Body Parts
Even if it does, which I doubt, I don't care. Other deaths have to be reported and that isn't considered a violation of anyone else's privacy, so this shouldn't either.
If the women having these abortions don't want people to know about it, maybe they should think about why they are ashamed of their decision in the first place such that they don't want anyone to know about it. Otherwise, they can go ahead and have the abortion, let it be reported, and then go buy one of those T-shirts that says, "I had an abortion" on it so they can flaunt a decision they are proud of.
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