2 peer review of the 2 attached PowerPoint 1200 words. due 5/2/21

Problem Statement: Late Term Abortions

Late term abortions would be considered any pregnancy past 20 weeks gestation. There are not any mandates or regulations on reporting any abortion. “There is no national requirement for data submission or reporting” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020). States and facilities voluntarily report their data to the CDC, making statistics inconsistent. According to the CDC, less than one percent of abortions are considered late term (CDC, 2020). Yet, reports do not specify the exact gestation age, so anything past 20 weeks is only voluntarily reported as late term. Advances in medicine have allowed babies born as early as 22 weeks to live. The survival rate at 22 weeks is 5.1%, 23.6% at 23 weeks, 54.9% at 24 weeks, 72.0% at 25 weeks, and 81.4% at 26 weeks (Johnston, 2019). As one can see, there is a major difference in the chances of survival for a baby born at 22 weeks compared to 26 weeks. I believe there should be a more accurate way to collect data across the states. If there was a unified process that details the specifics to each abortion, then certain policies and laws may be justifies and make more sense. Law makers need concrete evidence and statics before any regulations can be implemented

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Problem Statement Reporting

“Homicide is when one human being causes the death of another” (Cornell Law School, n.d.). This is where situations dealing with late term abortions may get complicated. A baby that was not expected to live but does, may not get lifesaving care. According to title 18, a baby is considered a legal person outside of the womb. The homicide law could apply in such cases as failed late term abortions, yet abortion documentation reports lack vital details. Only twenty-eight states require providers to report post abortion complication, while only six states require providers to report whether the fetus was viable (Guttmacher Institute, 2021). Without mandated reporting and streamlined documentation of procedures, homicide charges may be difficult to prove. As of 2019, nine states were required to report a live birth after a failed abortion (Semelsberger, 2020). This is where the amendment to title 18 comes in to protect those babies who may have a second chance at life. Consistency of documentation and reporting is not just for seeing the “bad” side of abortion but also create ways to improve upon abortion care and improved contraception. Statistics should especially be gathered for those late term abortions, not only for improvements, but also to ensure quality care. This reporting of such statistics and record keeping should fall under the non-maleficence principle of nursing. So while it may seem this record keeping and reporting is to condemn abortions, it could actually improve upon such hot topic situations. Then law makers can really evaluate all of the facts

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