Today, U.S. Congressman Michael C. Burgess (TX-26) voted to ban partial-birth abortions. As a Member of the Bi-Partisan Congressional Pro-Life Caucus and a physician who dedicated 21 years of his life to pro-life obstetrics practice, Burgess calls on House and Senate conferees to ban this procedure and send the bill to the President to sign into law.

In a speech on the House floor, Congressman Burgess said, “As a physician who practiced obstetrics and gynecology and delivered over 3,000 babies, I am personally opposed to any type of abortion. During my two decades of practice of obstetrics, with my share of high-risk pregnancies, I never encountered a situation where the partial birth procedure was required. I believe it is an inhumane act that is never medically necessary. The procedure itself, always fatal to the baby, carries substantial risk for the mother as well.”
The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003, H.R. 760, would make it illegal for physicians to perform a partial birth abortion. Doctors who violate the ban are subject to fines, a maximum of 2 years imprisonment, or both.

Partial-birth abortion is the procedure by which a doctor partially delivers a live baby, then kills the child by puncturing the base of the skull with a sharp object, and then vacuuming out his or her brain. It is estimated, between 3,000 and 5,000 of these violent procedures are performed every year in the United States. Dr. James McMahon, who developed this procedure, testified before Congress in 1995 that he performed partial-birth abortions on babies with no physical problems, even in the third trimester, for such reasons as youth of the mother or for `psychiatric´ difficulties. He further stated that of about 2,000 such abortions that he performed, only 9 percent were performed for "maternal [health] indications," and of that group, the most common reason was "depression."

In 1995, a panel of 12 doctors representing the American Medical Association, voted unanimously to recommend banning partial birth abortion, calling it “basically repulsive.”

Partial birth abortions are done in the third trimester when an unborn child has developed organs and characteristics of a breathing newborn. Through the use of technology patients now have the opportunity to see how life develops before birth. Parents can now hear the beating of their unborn child's heart as early as 21 days, and can see the movement of the child’s arms and legs at three months.

“I believe the U.S. Constitution is very clear when it guarantees a right to life. Partial birth abortion has no place in a civilized society,” commented Burgess.