Abortion Legalization Importance - Essay Example

ABORTION by of the of the Introduction The controversy related to morality in abortion is one of the most crucial issues in biomedical ethics. The controversy has a long history and ever since the legislation of abortion in 1973, it is still widely debated among the public and researchers in terms of legality and morality in terminating a potential life. In recent years, with the emergence of “conscientious objection” legislation in developed countries like, Australia and the United States, physicians have gained a legal power to refuse the termination of a potential life in case it contradicts with their own moral or ethical virtues (Meyers & Woods 1996, p. 115-116). Consequently, the access to safe and legal abortion services in the US continues to decline. By means of various researches and philosophical theories, the paper argues that medical community has an obligation to conduct all legally approved medical services, including abortion and fulfill their moral duty to serve the society by performing own professional job functions regardless of personal values and moral principles. Therefore, it is morally justifiable for the medical community to conduct an abortion as long as it doesn’t violates state laws and parents’ trust and their approval. Also, the paper highlights the importance of preserving women’s abortion right and importance of legalization of it. Medical Justification Recently, extreme opponent of pro-choice group, Joe Walsh, a representative of Illinois, argued that advances in technology and sciences have eliminated the need for abortion to save the lives of women. He claimed that the pro-choice activists are using the health issues of the mother as a tool to defend the abortion favoring policies. However, the statement issued by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist explained that abortion is necessary in many critical situations of pregnancy in order to save the life of mother. Several situations such as, infections, cases of preeclampsia, heart failure, very high blood pressure lead to the only choice of abortion to save the life of mother. Despite advanced technology and development of science, in many of such cases abortion can’t be avoided. In a way, legalization of abortion helps in such critical cases and medical community is morally and legally justified to perform abortion in order to save the life of mother (Health and Wellness 2012). As many physicians refuse to perform abortion, the number of safe abortions services is gradually decreasing in many places. Despite legislation of abortion, due to the lack of proper health services, inadequate knowledge of the law, social stigma, and lack of health information, many women undergo through unsafe abortion in clinically unhygienic and unsafe conditions. It is estimated that over 22 million of the world’s annual 47 million abortions are unsafe, and almost 30% of it results in serious medical complications which need emergency hospital-based operations. Each year, almost 48,000 women die due to unsafe abortions and almost equal number of women faces severe health effects from unsafe abortions. In other words, such practices of unsafe abortion can be prevented, if medical community isn’t blamed or pressurized by extreme religious and pro-life advocates for providing abortion service. Social Justification The Turnaway survey conducted by public health researchers with the UC San Francisco group, Advancing New Standards in reproductive Health (ANSIRH), revealed some shocking facts. According to the survey, denial of abortion leads to several psychological and personality changes in women. In the critical cases, where woman is raped, or fetus has shown abnormal development and unlikely to survive, or mother is incapable to raise the child, how can denial for abortion be justified? It is a fundamental right of women to decide when to be a mother. No one has right to interfere in their personal decision by holding on morality. Several studies have constantly proved that when the right for abortion is denied and forced the woman to carry the pregnancy against her will, it has caused drastic negative impacts on both, mother and child. Only 11 percent of women, who were denied an abortion, put their babies for adoption. So, the concern of anti-abortionist about less availability of children for adoption becomes irrational and baseless. When a woman is denied the abortion, she is more likely to settle on public support, unemployed, and under the poverty line. Also, it indirectly places more financial burden on the state, because of such mothers’ increased reliance on public assistance programs (Newitz 2012). According to the reports of recent studies, almost one-half of total pregnancies in America are accidental or unintended. Around 75 percent of women, who had abortions in 2000, were teenagers. According to the data of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), when teenage mothers or rape-victims are denied the abortion right, it causes significant negative effects on their physical, psychological, and social health. They are prone to depression, chronic anxiety disorder, drugs, alcohol addiction, and suicidal behavior. Children born from unintended pregnancy often suffer from social neglect, physical and mental abuse. Due to the poverty, such children do not receive adequate education, health care and other basic necessities. According to the observation of Rachel Jones, a senior research associate at the Alan Guttmacher Institutes, the rate of abortion is thrice in black women compare to white women, mainly because of poverty and unstable marital life. Considering these staggering facts, how can denial to their right of abortion be justified? Clearly, it is a known fact that, most of the women who opt for abortion are mentally or financially not ready to take care of child very well. According to the recent survey, almost 90 percent of women in the U.S. who had abortion, claimed that they are not mature enough to raise a child, financially weak, or find it as an interruption in their career (Yin, 2013). Under such circumstances, what will be achieved by forcing such women to carry their pregnancy? Can anti-abortion advocates guarantee the well-being and healthy uprising of these children? Of course, not. Denying the right of abortion, will only lead to the birth of unwanted, unloved children, who will possibly have to suffer and bear the dark future. There is no doubt that the lack of love and attention to these children will encourage criminal behavior and aggressive nature in them, creating unstable and violent society. As quoted by Garrett Hardin: “Society does not need more children; but it does need more loved children. Quite literally, we cannot afford unloved children - but we pay heavily for them every day. There should not be the slightest communal concern when a woman elects to destroy the life of her thousandth-of-an-ounce embryo. But all society should rise up in alarm when it hears that a baby that is not wanted is about to be born” (Hardin, 2011). Philosophical Justification According to utilitarianism theory, an action is ethically justifiable if the consequence of that action brings happiness to majority of people. When woman is denied the access to abortion, it causes significant negative physical and physiological impact on both, the mother and child. Due to the negligence, economic burden, psychological imbalance, poor health, or disturbed family background, children from unintended pregnancy often suffer from various mental and psychological disorders, addiction, malnutrition, attracting them towards crime, drug abuse, and violence. From a wider perspective, it triggers high rate of crimes, violence, substance abuse, teenage pregnancies in society, lowering overall health and stability in society. In other words, denial of abortion to women can’t be morally justified as it would bring higher unfavorable consequences to majority of people. According to Shakespeare, conscience is a mere excuse for invoked or vice to escape from one’s duty. Conscientious objection is immoral and wrong when it constrains a person from performing his true duty. Medical community has always considered as a responsible entity that has certain ethical obligations to follow such as, providing health care services to people regardless of their class, race, gender, nationality, and social background. If a person is not prepared to provide legally approved, beneficial, and efficient care to a patient just because it conflicts with his moral values, such person should opt the medical profession. Each woman has right to freedom and to choose whether she wants to bear a child or not. If a woman is willing to go through abortion, no one, including her relatives, religious groups, or physicians, should be allowed to deny her abortion right as long as it doesn’t cause critical health complications or threat to her life. Providing health service to patients is a moral and legal duty of medical community and it is justified to perform abortion in cases where woman is not willing to carry the pregnancy or pregnancy possesses serious threat to the life of mother. Conclusion Each woman has right to freedom and choose when she wants to bear a child. These rights are even protected by legislation system of many developed countries. However, in many cases, due to personal conscience obligation or pressure of radical religious groups, anti-abortionists, or political groups, medical community hesitates to perform abortions. Various philosophical experts and medical ethics studies have regularly emphasized on the moral and legal duty of doctors to provide health services to their patients in any circumstances. The denial of providing health services, including abortion, is against one’s right to healthcare services and violation of medical ethics. Therefore, medical community shouldn’t be biased in providing services like, abortion due to personal values or external pressure and it is morally justified to perform abortions as long as it doesn’t violates state laws or trust and wish of mother. Reference List Health and Wellness, 2012, Doctors say abortions do sometimes save womens lives, USA TODAY, viewed 19 February 2015, . Meyers, C, & Woods, RD, 1996, An obligation to provide abortion services: what happens when physicians refuse?, Journal of Medical Ethics, vol. 22, pp. 115-120, viewed 19 February 2015, . Newitz, A, 2012,What happens to women denied abortions? This is the first scientific study to find out, io9, viewed 19 February 2015, . Read More