Women’s Health Issues Ignored by Abortion Advocates

Once again, the Democrats have asserted that the only women’s issues they seem to care about are whether or not women have the right to terminate pregnancies whenever and however they want.

Last night during the vice presidential debate, Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia asserted that he and Hillary Clinton would work hard to repeal the decades-old Hyde Amendment, which prevents federal tax dollars from supporting abortion except in cases of rape, incest, or endangerment to the mother’s life.

“We can come together … to create a culture of life. More and more young people today are embracing life because we know we are better for it,” said Pence.

This bipartisan law acknowledged that some taxpayers would feel uneasy about paying for a procedure that destroys babies in utero. Until now, Democrats at least admitted it was understandable to feel conflicted about this difficult and sensitive topic.

Not anymore. Now the gloves are off and everyone will be expected to pay for abortion procedures with tax dollars. Kaine made that clear in his remarks Tuesday night.

On the other hand, Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana, Donald Trump’s running mate, asserted there are other options for women considering abortion. “I sought to stand with great compassion for the sanctity of life,” Pence said of his time as governor.

Related: Families Give Pence the Win in VP Debate

“The state of Indiana is also — sought to make sure we expand alternatives and health care counseling for women, [the] non-abortion alternatives. I’m also pleased with the fact we are well on our way in Indiana to becoming the most pro-adoption state in America. I think if you’re pro-life you should be pro-adoption. But what I cannot understand is how Hillary Clinton and now the senator at her side support a practice like partial-birth abortion.”

This year the American fertility rate fell to its lowest point in 100 years.

Partial-birth abortion is not a medically recognized term — but it does depict a real and highly graphic procedure. For babies past the 20-week development point, doctors have to dilate the cervix, pull out the child feet-first, and puncture and collapse the skull. It’s a brutal process that destroys infants just a few weeks away from being able to survive on their own outside the womb. The Guttmacher Institute estimates that at least 2,200 of these procedures are performed each year.

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More than just abortion, however — Tim Kaine reinforced that the Democrats have blinders on when it comes to women’s health. For them, women’s health simply means preventing children from being born — through contraceptives and abortions. But what of the many women and families in this country who fight infertility or who cannot have the number of children they want?

As Mike Pence said, “People need to understand, we can come together as a nation. We can create a culture of life. More and more young people today are embracing life because we know we are better for it. Like Mother Teresa said, let’s welcome the children into the world. There are so many families around the country who cannot have children.”

[lz_bulleted_list title=”Infertility in U.S. in 2015″ source=”http://www.cdc.gov”]Women ages 15 to 44 with impaired ability to get pregnant or carry a baby to term: 7.5 million|Married women 15 to 44 unable to get pregnant after at least 12 consecutive months of unprotected sex: 1.0 million[/lz_bulleted_list]

More than 21 percent of people who have fewer children than they want say that their lives are worse for it. One in six couples struggles with infertility. Having no children at all can be especially grievous, and most childless couples endure their pain in silence. This year, the American fertility rate fell to its lowest point in 100 years. A failing, fragile economy has left many families in difficult financial straits, unable to afford the number of children they actually want.

Millennials are having fewer children than any other previous generation — but not necessarily because they shun child-rearing. Stifled by student debt and low-paying jobs, many cannot afford to have kids. America has not yet hit population decline as have other countries in Europe, but the population is shrinking and sociologists project it will eventually turn to decline. Fertility treatments are up to 150,000 IVF procedures annually. There are plenty of families out there who would welcome an adopted child but are unable to proceed because it can cost upwards of $50,000.

Julia Jones and her husband, Ryan Hair, have been trying to welcome a child into their home in San Jose, California, for six years now. Jones is unable to carry children because of complications from a heart transplant when she was a teenager. The couple has researched and tried adoption, foster care, and surrogacy — all to no avail. They remain childless. Jones has tried to assuage her grief by sponsoring children online through Compassion International.

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Families such as these could benefit greatly from a national effort to promote and finance adoption. As governor of Indiana, Pence worked to improve the adoption processes in his state. It provides birth mothers with financial, medical, nutritional, and health services and gives prospective adoption families counseling services and financial assistance. Placing a baby up for adoption costs the birth mother nothing. Even more, Pence as governor created a financial surplus instead of a deficit. He provided these services to families while keeping costs responsible.

Related: When Fertility Turns Fraudulent

Making adoption more widely available could drive down the cost. If more women were willing to carry their children to full term and give them up for adoption rather than abort them, infertile couples would have more options. Instead of trying IVF cycle after IVF cycle, they could adopt a child through a simple, inexpensive process.

Abortion appears the only women’s health “issue” that Democrats are willing to endorse and finance. For those families who actually want to have children, the options slowly constrict.