Why the CDC’s annual abortion numbers are understated

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently released its report on the number of annual abortions in the United States, and according to the organization’s data, abortions in the U.S. have hit their lowest level since Roe v. Wade. But what many have noticed is that the CDC’s number is significantly lower than the actual total of abortions in the U.S. Here’s why.

Both the CDC and the private Guttmacher Institute publish national abortion totals; however, the numbers are vastly different.

Click here for much more from Live Action News.

Samsung app comforts premature babies by playing their mother’s heartbeat

Prematurity can be difficult for babies and mothers alike, but new technology is helping to make it a more positive experience. An app created by Samsung helps to comfort premature babies in incubators by allowing their mothers to record the sound of their heartbeats and voices. The app then removes the high frequencies from the audio, to make it sound similar to how it did inside the womb, and is played on a speaker by the baby’s side.

Samsung notes that 15 million babies were born premature last year, unable to be nurtured by their mothers, who carried them in their own bodies for so long. The NICU environment, though lifesaving, can be stressful for babies, and that stress can lead to changes in the brain’s structure and function. This leaves them at higher risk for language and attention deficits.

Click here for more from Live Action News.

These babies were saved by abortion pill reversal - So were hundreds of others

This month, over 6,000 people shared an image of a newborn baby moments after his or her delivery. While every newborn is worthy of an amazing first photo outside the womb, this one was different. This particular child survived an abortion thanks to a pro-life doctor who knew exactly what to do to reverse the effects of the abortion pill — something the abortion industry claims is impossible, and even dangerous.

In an interview with Pregnancy Help News, Dr. Brent Boles shared the story of the baby in the viral photo. The baby’s mother, called “Brianna” to protect her identity, went to her local Planned Parenthood where she was given the first of the two dose abortion pill regimen: mifepristone. This pill blocks the progesterone receptors, thereby reducing progesterone levels in the mother’s blood. Progesterone is necessary to sustain the pregnancy. The second pill, misoprostol, acts to induce labor. When only the first pill is taken, there may still be time to save the child.

Click here for more from Live Action News.

Planned Parenthood boosts CEOs’ salaries while demanding tax funding: report

The Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) continues to present itself as a simple organization that depends on government assistance to serve women’s health, but a new report highlights just how lavishly the abortion giant compensates its top executives.

Between 2015 and 2017, the average compensation for a PPFA affiliate CEO rose from $237,999 to $255,523, according to American Life League’s (ALL’s) 2018 report on the subject. The average compensation to top PPFA executives during that same period rose from $389,514 to $394,893.

Click here for more from Life Site News.

Pro-Lifers mourn the death of President George H.W. Bush

The National Right to Life Committee (NRLC), the federation of state right-to-life affiliates and more than 3,000 local chapters, mourns the death of former President George H.W. Bush. The 41st president died last night at age 94.

“President George H.W. Bush dedicated his administration to advancing pro-life policies to protect mothers and their unborn children,” said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life. “He used his presidency to stop enactment of pro-abortion laws and promote life-affirming solutions. Our prayers today are with former president George W. Bush, and the entire Bush family.”

During President Bush’s term in office, his Administration urged the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade and allow states to pass laws to protect unborn children, stating, “protection of innocent human life – in or out of the womb – is certainly the most compelling interest that a State can advance.”

Click here for more from NRL News Today.

Time for new conservative leadership as abortion numbers climb higher in Illinois

New abortion stats emerged this week, showing Illinois' numbers rising to nearly 40,000 annually.

Not only are more expectant mothers coming into Illinois to abort their babies because their states are passing more and more restrictions on abortions,  Illinois taxpayers began picking up the tab for Medicaid abortions last year. The numbers are certain to be higher in 2018.

Abortion advocates celebrated by calling Illinois a "reproductive rights haven."

Click here for more from Illinois Review.

2017 Report Shows Increase in Illinois Abortions

The Illinois Department of Public Health has released the 2017 Abortion Statistics report in which it was detailed that the abortion rate has increased. This reflects man increase in out of state abortions.

Some details in short state that in 2017:

- 39,329 abortions were recorded in Illinois (.5% increase)
- 5,528 out of state abortions were recorded in Illinois (over 21% increase)

Click here to view the entire report (in PDF).

Pro-life students ask Trump to defund Planned Parenthood

Students for Life has urged U.S. President Donald Trump to defund Planned Parenthood, and encouraged pro-life advocates to ask the administration to do so.

The pro-life organization issued a letter to President Trump Nov. 27 signed by the Kristan Hawkins, president for Students for Life of America.

In the message, Hawkins thanks Trump for pro-life measures he has undertaken, and invites him to pursue five steps to defund Planned Parenthood.

Click here for more from CNA/EWTN News.

Pro-life law firm asks Supreme Court to dismiss Planned Parenthood lawsuit against David Daleiden

Attorneys from the Thomas More Society have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a decision of the Ninth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals that denied their motion to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood against pro-life hero David Daleiden.

The Thomas More Society is asking the high court to apply California’s Anti-SLAPP statute to dismiss Planned Parenthood’s lawsuit and vindicate Daleiden. The statute gives defendants like Daleiden the ability to quickly end Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, known as “SLAPP” lawsuits.

Click here for more from Life Site News.

Former abortion worker: We ‘often’ skirted the law on waiting periods

The pro-life group And Then There Were None sponsored a webcast in which a former abortion worker explained how her abortion facility broke the law requiring waiting periods before abortion. In North Carolina, women must be given certain information, including information about abortion’s risks and abortion alternatives, and then wait 72 hours before having an abortion. The information may be given over the phone, but the caller is required to wait before coming in for an abortion. The former abortion worker’s facility broke that law. The former worker said:

Often times what would happen was patients would come in and say, “Oh, yeah, I did speak with someone. I don’t have my paperwork and we wouldn’t have their paperwork, but my regional director would say something to the effect of, “Well, can you show me in your cell phone where you had a phone call from a private number? Or show me in your cell phone where you have a phone call from an unlisted number or a 1-800 number, and we’ll just say that that was the phone call, and we just forgot to put it in the system.

Click here for more from Live Action News.

Doctor on prenatal surgery: If the baby is a patient, then he’s also a person

In a recent Facebook video, Dr. William Lile, an OB/GYN in Florida, speaks about how children in the womb are distinct human beings from their mothers, and also how they should be viewed as persons because they can receive prenatal medical treatment.

In the video, Lile says that “the mom is a patient, and the baby is a patient.” The mother’s body, he says, doesn’t see the baby’s body as just another one of her organs — which is so often the implication of pro-abortion slogans such as ‘my body, my choice’ — but as a “foreign entity.” Sometimes, he adds, the mother’s body even makes antibodies against the baby. In cases like this, antibodies cross the placenta and begin to attack the baby, and the child’s blood count may become low enough that a blood transfusion is necessary… in-utero. It can be done “as early as 19 weeks,” says Lile, and can be done every four weeks to continue to ensure the health of the baby, because the baby is viewed as a separate patient.

Click here for the video and much more from Live Action News.

Help Save Lives this #GivingTuesday

Make a Charitable Gift on #GivingTuesday and Help Us End Abortion and Save Lives. Help us to continue our life-saving work by giving the gift of life on November 27, 2018. It’s now easier than ever, just Click Here.

The Illinois Federation for Right to Life...

 - Sponsors educational seminars and conventions to train volunteers and educate the public on the life issues.

 - Encourages the creation and strengthening of pro-life affiliates throughout Illinois.

 - Serves as a communications center for the interchange of ideas and news of interest to pro-life people in Illinois.

 - Provides knowledgeable individuals to participate in radio & television programs and public forums to discuss the life issues.

 - Promotes programs and activities which increase respect for the dignity and value of every human life.

Effective Action is only possible through citizens involvement!  We Need Your Help!   Please donate today!   Please note, donations made through the below service are designated 501(c)(3) and are tax deductible as charitable contributions.

Click here to donate.

Trump appoints pro-life neurobiologist to National Science Board, pro-abortion activists panic

President Donald Trump has appointed Dr. Maureen Condic, a prominent pro-life expert on biology and medical ethics, to a six-year term helping shape science-related policies with Congress as well as the federal bureaucracy.

Condic is an associate professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy at the University of Utah Health, the author of over 40 articles and a book on science policy and bioethics, and an experienced scientific researcher and adviser who in 2016 consulted for the House Select Investigative Panel of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Click here for more from Life Site News.

Trump admin moves pro-life Scott Lloyd from refugee policy to faith-based initiatives

Scott Lloyd, the pro-life member of the Trump administration’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) who fought to prevent the government from being forced to facilitate abortions for illegal immigrant minors, has been resassigned to another position within the department.

Now, Lloyd will become a senior adviser at HHS’s Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Politico reports. The center’s mission is to champion religious liberty and religious engagement in the process to develop solutions for issues such as health insurance, the opioid crisis, mental illness, and childhood obesity.

Click here for more from Life Site News.

CDC: Abortions continue to decline, dropping to lowest number since Roe

Abortion data just released by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reveals that the number of reported abortions dipped slightly (2.27 percent) from the previous year. In 2015, 638,169 abortions (down from 652,639 in 2014) were reported to CDC from 49 reporting areas excluding California, Maryland and New Hampshire. The abortion rate also decreased from 12.1 in 2014 to 11.8 in 2015.

The CDC estimates that, in 2015, 18% of all pregnancies in the United States ended in induced abortion, according to the most recent national estimates from 2010.

Click here for the report.

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Faith-based Adoption Providers Are Answering the Pro-Life Call and Must Be Protected

There is a movement of Christians putting actions to their pro-life words through adoption. Adoptive families will find their search for faith-based adoption agencies increasingly difficult, however. Faith-based agencies (FBAs) have been under attack for practicing their religious freedom, despite their impactful work in placing children in loving homes.

Courtney Lott works with such organizations. As part of Family Research Council’s Speaker Series and to recognize National Adoption Month 2018, she shared her experience as Co-Executive Director of Faithful Adoption Consultants (FAC) and mother of eight children—both biological and adopted. FAC walks alongside adoptive families to assist in all aspects of the adoption process. From matching families with children to encouraging the birth mothers to adopt instead of abort, the pro-life message is clear.

Lott summarized FAC’s mission: “Our heart is to build relationships, educate families, and put actions to our pro-life words.”

Click here for more from NRL News Today.

Patient hemorrhages at Planned Parenthood that caused another’s death

A 19-year-old girl was taken to the hospital in an ambulance after a botched abortion at Planned Parenthood of Illinois, located in Chicago.

Last month, the victim underwent an abortion, and began hemorrhaging from her uterus and vagina badly enough that staffers needed to call 911. Audio revealed that there was no doctor present at the time.  According to Operation Rescue, there have been nine calls for emergency assistance within the last year. This Planned Parenthood is also believed to be the same facility where Tonya Reaves was killed in 2012 by a botched abortion.

Click here for more from Live Action News.

650 Obamacare State Exchange Plans Cover Abortion on Demand in 2019 -- a 23% Increase Over 2018: Taxpayers are Funding Abortion on Demand Even if Their State Opts Out

The Family Research Council (FRC) and Charlotte Lozier Institute (CLI), the research arm of Susan B. Anthony List, announced the results of their fifth annual comprehensive review of elective abortion coverage in Individual and Family health insurance plans offered on healthcare.gov and state-based exchanges under the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare"). Open enrollment began on November 1 and continues until December 15.

The groups' 2019 fact sheet with detailed information and an interactive map are available online at ObamacareAbortion.com. The web site was launched in 2014 as a resource to help consumers find pro-life health plans. Some of their key findings for the 2019 plan year include:

·         Of all Individual and Family exchange plans in the 24 states and the District of Columbia that allow abortion coverage in exchange plans, an estimated 65 percent (650 plans) cover elective abortion -- up from 53 percent (527 plans) in 2018.

·         In eight states and the District of Columbia, 100 percent of Individual and Family plans on the exchange cover elective abortion. There is no pro-life option in these jurisdictions.

·         In an additional five states, between 50 and 99 percent of plans cover elective abortion.

·         26 states have passed laws to opt out of elective abortion coverage in plans offered on the state exchange.

·         Two insurance companies on the Colorado exchange, Bright Health and Elevate by Denver Health Medical, now clearly state that elective abortion is not covered in their 2019 plans after CLI documented their failure to disclose whether abortion was covered as required by federal law and requested enforcement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

·         In 2017, there were more than 200 Multi-State Plans (MSPs) nationwide; for 2019, only one state -- Arkansas -- offers MSPs. None of these plans cover elective abortion. Guaranteeing there would be at least one pro-life plan on the state exchanges was a stated goal of the Affordable Care Act -- that promise has now all but collapsed.

·         In 2018, an estimated 2.2 million people in states that have not opted out of abortion coverage are receiving a total of $11.2 billion in premium tax credits for plans that cover elective abortion.

Click here for more from Christian Newswire.

A repugnant new test could screen out IVF embryos with lesser intelligence

Babies could be chosen based on genetic indications of intelligence. Company also expects parents to chose babies of higher intelligence

Genetic tests have long made it possible to screen out embryos with conditions such as cystic fibrosis or Down’s syndrome. Now, a new way of testing an embryo’s genes could make it possible to discard them for not being intelligent enough.

Genomic Prediction, a company based in New Jersey, says it has developed genetic tests that can assess complex traits, such as the risk of some diseases and lower intelligence. The tests haven’t been used yet, but the firm began talks last month with several IVF clinics with a view to providing them to customers.

While such a test can’t predict IQ for each embryo, it can, apparently, indicate certain genetic outliers, allowing parents to avoid embryos with a high chance of an IQ 25 points below average. While the company says it will only offer screening based on intelligence for cases of “mental disability”, co-founder Stephen Hsu claims the technique could be used to identify embryos with a likelihood of having a high IQ. “I think people are going to demand that,” he said. “If we don’t do it, some other company will.”

Peter Visscher, a geneticist at the University of Queensland, Australia, says that the idea of using such tests to select embryos predicted to have high intelligence is “repugnant, but technologically feasible.”

Click here for more from NRL News Today.

Pelosi promised Planned Parenthood she wouldn’t pass Obamacare without abortion

Despite former President Barack Obama’s promises that “no federal dollars” would be used “to fund abortions and federal conscience laws would remain in place” under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a recent Tweet by former Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards unintentionally revealed that funding abortion through the ACA was actually part of the plan from the beginning.

In a series of tweets, Richards responded to pushback against Nancy Pelosi being nominated as Speaker of the House in the newly-elected Congress. In her tweets, Richards said she spoke with Pelosi while the ACA was being pushed through, receiving an assurance that abortion would be part of the healthcare act.

Click here for more from Life Action News.