Ethics Of Abortion

Is it morally right to terminate a pregnancy before normal childbirth? A fetus is a form of life, and every human being deserves the right to live, but when does a fetus become sufficiently human to have the right to life? The 'Catechism of the Catholic Church ' states that the embryo must be treated as a person from conception (6). However the embryo is still inside the pregnant woman, it is a part of her body and it feeds on whatever she eats. I believe that the fetus becomes a human being at the time of its birth, when it separates from the womb of its mother, and has to rely on its own resources to stay alive. Thus it is not unethical to terminate ‘its life’ before the fetus is actually born.

Shouldn’t it be the woman 's right to choose

For one, amniocentesis and CVS are not available everywhere, often doctors refuse to conduct the test as they may not seem necessary, and finally those who are willing to conduct the test do not do it for free. There is an average cost of $1500. The price ranges from $1100.00 to $2000.00 (9) for just the amniocentesis test. And to get an abortion is an extra $300 to $800 (10). Thus the total cost of knowing all the genetic information of the child, and getting it removed is on average about

There is a big economic aspect that has to be taken into count. A child with Down syndrome has an increased risk for certain medical conditions such as congenital heart defects, respiratory and hearing problems, Alzheimer 's disease, childhood leukemia and thyroid conditions. Many of these conditions are now treatable, however they too have a cost. Although the severity can vary, a child with down syndrome usually requires extensive attention and care, thus public hospitals would not be suitable to them, and in private hospitals, they would be offered a ‘special ward’. This ward would assign a nurse to keep a constant watch over the child. The price of this private ward will be much more expensive, if the public ward costs $300, then it will be $900, thus it is triple the cost (11). And the price of medical care, for an infant who is below the age of 4, and who is diagnosed with down syndrome is 12 times higher than that of a child who is not