GOP-Controlled House in Pa. Advances Down Syndrome-Abortion Ban

A bill that would ban abortions based on a diagnosis — or even just a belief — that a fetus has Down syndrome, is being fast-tracked for a vote next week in Pennsylvania's Republican-controlled House, Philly.com reports.

The measure calls for prohibiting abortions when they are sought exclusively because of "a prenatal diagnosis of, or belief that the unborn child has, Down syndrome," the bill reads.

House Speaker Mike Turzai, who is pushing the bill, said: "How many of us could have been eliminated through abortion because … some segment of the world doesn't think we're good enough? Who are these people to be so judgmental?"

Opponents of the bill include the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

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