Overhaul new abortion law

The critics warned legislators against implementing further restrictions in Utah's abortion laws. They warned of the harm that could come from tying the hands of physicians and other health-care providers women turn to in times of need.

Despite the warnings of health-care professionals, the Utah Legislature amended the state abortion law to make it a crime to perform an abortion at a hospital that receives state funding, except under certain exemptions. Those do not include fatal deformity of the fetus.

Since then, the real-world implications of the amended law have been realized. A Roy couple whose unborn child had grave deformities and could not live outside the womb could not obtain an abortion at a nearby hospital because of the new restrictions in Utah's abortion law. The couple was told to go elsewhere because Utah hospitals have stopped terminating pregnancies involving doomed fetuses for fear of losing state funding.

This particular state law was born out of an uninformed and provocative debate during the last session — a debate that at times degenerated into discussions about whether there are different degrees of rape, and whether some rape victims should be eligible for abortions while others aren't. This unfortunate debate led to a law that ties the hands of physicians in cases of severe fetal abnormalities. Most likely, the law is unconstitutional.

We share many lawmakers' concerns that far too many abortions are performed each year for no reason other than convenience and that a climate of abortion on demand demeans the sanctity of life. However, this was hardly the way to address those problems meaningfully.

People who are placed in the position of terminating a pregnancy because of fatal fetal defects want a child. Many have prepared nurseries, picked names and otherwise prepared for the blessed event. For them, a wanted pregnancy has gone awry. These are human tragedies. They have nothing to do with promiscuity or immoral behavior.

To compound a couple's misery by forcing them to get help from caregivers other than those with whom they have an established relationship is wrong. Imagine the frustrations of physicians and other health-care professionals who have to turn away longtime patients just when they need them most.

Utah needs to change this law before a court forces it to. The health-care profession should be free to provide compassionate care when these very tragic circumstances arise.