Joyce Signs Petition To Bring Infanticide Ban To The Floor For Vote
Congressman John Joyce (PA-13) today joined his colleagues on both sides of the aisle in the effort to end infanticide by signing a discharge petition to bring the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Act (H.R. 962) to the floor for a vote. Speaker Pelosi has blocked this bill's consideration 26 times during the 116th Congress.
The discharge petition requires 218 signatures to force consideration of the bill in the House. After today's legislative activity, the petition had 191 signatures. The procedural tactic of a discharge petition is one of the only tools the minority party in the House has to push for its legislation to be voted on.
The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, which Joyce cosponsors, was introduced by Ann Wagner (R-Mo.) in response to Virginia Governor Ralph Northam's comments in January defending the practice of infanticide.
The legislation requires that health care practitioners who are present at a live birth of an infant who survives an abortion provide that infant with the same degree of care that would be offered to any other child. It also mandates that hospital employees report violations to law enforcement authorities, and penalizes the intentional killing of a born-alive child through and#xFB01;nes or up to five years of imprisonment.
Tuesday Morning Joyce joined pro-life advocates, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and Minority Whip Steve Scalise for a press conference to advocate for the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.
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Click HERE to watch Joyce's video statement on signing the discharge petition.
TRANSCRIPT
The Hippocratic Oath as originally translated calls on physicians to protect life and instructs us never to perform an abortion.
As a doctor, it is my belief that the oath's message is that every life is a precious gift from God and it is the job of those in the medical community to do everything in our power to protect the patients that we treat.
Today I am supporting the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. This is legislation that puts the concepts of this oath into law by prohibiting medical professionals from aiding infanticide.
House Republicans have formally asked Speaker Pelosi 26 separate times to bring the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act to the floor for a vote, but the Speaker has refused all 26 requests.
Today we brought forth a petition that, with enough Democratic signatures, will force the Speaker to hold a vote on this critical legislation.
I am proud to uphold the original Hippocratic Oath to protect life, and to today sign the petition in support of the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.
One of the reasons that you sent me to Congress was to be the voice for the voiceless, and today I did that. And it is my hope that all of my colleagues have the heart, and the compassion, and the wherewithal to join me in this significant effort.
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Joyce is a cosponsor of numerous pro-life bills including, legislation to ban abortion after 20 weeks and legislation to defund Planned Parenthood. Earlier this week, the 13th District lawmaker and 80 of his colleagues introduced the Conscience Protection Act, which amends the Public Health Service Act to prevent government at the local, state, or federal level from discriminatory practices and penalization of health care providers that do not participate in abortion services.
The Conscience Protection Act codifies the Weldon Amendment, which protects charities and health care providers from coercion into abortion practices that violate their personal and religious beliefs. This bill also ensures those whose conscience protection has been violated will be able to seek justice in court.
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