204 House Dems vote against bill to give lifesaving treatment to infants who survive abortions

The House of Representatives recently passed a bill that aims to penalize doctors who fail to provide life-saving care to infants born alive after an abortion attempt. The bill, which saw all but one Democrat voting against it, passed with a vote of 217 to 204, with all Republicans in favor. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, voted “present.”

According to the bill, health care practitioners are required to provide the same level of professional care to a baby born with a heartbeat after an abortion as they would during a normal birth. Doctors who do not comply with this rule could face fines or up to five years of imprisonment.

House GOP leaders praised the bill, with Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., stating that requiring medical care for babies born alive after a failed abortion is not controversial but rather common sense. Emmer criticized Democrats for choosing to support infanticide rather than voting in favor of the bill, calling their stance extreme and out-of-touch.

Democrats, on the other hand, argue that the bill is redundant as there are already existing laws against infanticide and murder. They also express concerns that the bill could endanger the lives of women seeking late-term abortions due to medical emergencies while unfairly punishing doctors.

During the debate on the bill, Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., highlighted that late-term abortions make up only about 1% of all abortions and are often performed due to serious fetal abnormalities or risks to the mother’s health. She criticized the bill, stating that it is not based on science or reality.

Several Democrats who spoke out against the bill shared their personal experiences of undergoing emergency abortion procedures for nonviable pregnancies. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M., expressed concerns that the bill could lead to women dying on the operating table because doctors are afraid of facing jail time.

Republicans countered these arguments by emphasizing the importance of protecting infants who are born alive after an abortion attempt. Rep. Michelle Fischbach, R-Minn., described the bill as a way to prevent babies from being “left to die in a closet, alone and discarded like medical waste.”

The bill’s passage in the House follows its failure to advance in the Senate earlier in the week. The legislation did not receive the necessary 60 votes to proceed to a final vote.

Elizabeth Elkind, a politics reporter for Fox News Digital, provided coverage of the House of Representatives’ proceedings. You can follow her on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com.