Recently, South Dakota passed legislation banning abortion based on a child’s genetic disability of Down syndrome. Expert testimony to the legislature from Dr. Tara Lee referred to a 2012 US review of the medical literature showing a 61 to 93 percent abortion rate if a pre-born baby is diagnosed with Down syndrome. Lee went on to say, “Destroying the patient is not curative medicine…we must strive to advance medical treatments that can heal, not harm.”
The legislation passed unanimously in both houses. South Dakota Governor Krisi Noem signed the bill into law saying, “I look forward to the day when the Supreme Court recognizes that all preborn children inherently possess this right to life, too. Until that time comes, I am pleased to sign a ban on the abortion of a preborn child, just because that child is diagnosed with Down syndrome.”