by Diane Robertson
Years ago while living in Toronto, Canada, I found out that I was pregnant. But things were not going right. It was obvious the pregnancy would end as an early miscarriage. I went to a doctor. The doctor, upon finding out that I already had three children wanted to refer me for an abortion if the pregnancy didn’t miscarry. I said no, and that I loved all of my children. Two days later, I miscarried.
A year later, I was happily pregnant once again, only this time, I was more careful in choosing a doctor. I wanted myself and my child to be in the hands of a physician that respected the life of all children, even fourth, fifth, or fifteenth children. I could not imagine having a doctor delivering my baby when he thought it ought to be dead or that anyone’s child ought to be dead. I had a choice. The market was freer back then. I found a pro-life doctor.
Today, the market is not so free. Liberal law makers want to force every doctor to counsel patients on the benefits of abortion and be willing to refer them for that procedure. Just last week, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner signed senate bill 1564 into law that will do just that.
As of January 1, 2017 pro-life doctors and pregnancy centers will no longer have the legal right to counsel women to choose life for their babies. They will instead be required to endorse and refer patients for abortions.
This law and others like it takes the rights of conscience away from medical professional and the rights of patients to choose doctors who harbor their same beliefs. Both the doctors and the patients lose with these laws.