News

arrow-icon

  • Adoption Tax Credits: Utilization, State Expansions, and Taxpayer Savings

    Charlotte Lozier Institute  |  .

    In 2013, the Charlotte Lozier Institute published a report titled, “The Adoption Tax Credit: Progress and Prospects for Expansion.” The report both outlines the history of the adoption tax credit at the federal level and analyzes the number of states that provide some form of tax relief for adoption. Since the report was published, the federal adoption tax credit has continued to increase in dollar amount and is utilized by tens of thousands of Americans pursuing adoption each year. In addition, several states have created or expanded adoption tax credits at the state level, helping to offset adoption costs for American families.

    View More

  • Heritage Foundation “Index of Culture and Opportunity”: Life Is on the Right Track

    Charles A. “Chuck” Donovan  |  

    On July 20, 2017, The Heritage Foundation published the fourth installment of its annual Index of Culture and Opportunity (“Index”). The Index is an exercise in civil society that tracks and analyzes data that affects freedom and opportunity. Heritage writers explore three indicators: (1) cultural indicators, (2) poverty and dependence indicators, and (3) general opportunity indicators. Among the cultural indicators, Heritage analyzes America’s abortion rate.

    View More

  • Pregnancy Help Centers Win Another Legal Victory in Struggle Against Oppressive Regulations

    Thomas M. Messner, J.D.  |  

    Pregnancy help centers (PHCs) have won a victory in their struggle against oppressive regulations.

    At issue is a 2016 Illinois law regulating physicians and other health care personnel. Plaintiffs, including the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA), challenged the law, arguing, in the words of a federal district court, that it “compels [PHCs] to tell pregnant women the names of other doctors they believe offer abortions, and compels them to tell pregnant women that abortion has ‘benefits’ and is a ‘treatment option’ for pregnancy.”

    View More

  • Netherlands Forcible Euthanasia Case and the Slippery Slope

    Eugene C. Tarne, Caroline Savoie   |  

    Proponents of assisted suicide often dismiss “slippery slope” arguments on the grounds that proper safeguards will assure that assisted suicide will not devolve into euthanasia, either voluntary or not.

    Earlier this year, for example, Hawaii became another of several states to consider legislation to legalize assisted suicide (the effort failed).  During debate, one lawmaker who supported the bill dismissed concerns over where legalization might lead, saying “the inclusion of protections, such as euthanasia bans, helps allay the fears of critics who worry about the ‘slippery slope.’”

    View More

  • Virginia’s Annual Abortion Report Reveals Planned Parenthood’s Growing Market Share

    Charlotte Lozier Institute  |  .

    State abortion reporting provides a valuable perspective on abortion trends throughout the country. In particular, the Commonwealth of Virginia’s most recent report of abortion by facility, released by the Virginia Department of Health with data for 2015, offers a helpful overview of the numbers of abortions performed by each facility in the state. As Planned Parenthood fights for continued federal funding by insisting that abortion plays only a small part in its total health care services, Virginia’s information is especially relevant.  

    View More

  • Oklahoma’s Annual Abortion Report A Top Model For State Reporting

    Charlotte Lozier Institute  |  .

    Oklahoma’s annual abortion report serves as proof that state abortion reports can be both comprehensive and timely. Out of the 43 states that publish annual abortion reports, Oklahoma is one of only nine to have published its 2016 annual report by June of 2017. At the same time, Oklahoma’s 40-page report on abortion remains one of the most exhaustive in the nation.

    View More

  • Charlie Gard’s Case and Parental Advocacy for Chronically Ill Children

    Katherine Rafferty, Ph.D., M.A.  |  

    “My biggest issue is this: a parent is a caregiver and then of course the health professionals are the caregivers, but you know, who gets the final say?”

    -Mother whose daughter has osteosarcoma

    This essential question was posed by the mother of one of 33 children living with chronic conditions whose parents I interviewed for my recently published study in the current issue of Health Communication. The study is titled, “You know the medicine, I know my kid”: How parents advocate for their children living with complex chronic conditions.

    View More

  • Near Absence of Embryonic Stem Cells in California Clinical Trial Program

    Eugene C. Tarne  |  

    In 2013, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) – the nation’s largest funder of stem cell research outside of the federal government – authorized a new program, the Alpha Stem Cell Clinics Network.

    The Network’s goal, according to CIRM, “is to accelerate the development and delivery of stem cell treatments to patients.”  To achieve this, CIRM approved $70 million “to create a new statewide network of sites that will act as a hub for stem cell clinical trials.”  CIRM envisioned a network of “up to five clinic sites at established academic institutions.”  To date, three Alpha Stem Cell Clinics have been created, housed at City of Hope, University of California San Diego, and UCLA/UC Irvine.

    View More

  • Issues in Law and Medicine Spring 2017 Summaries

    Charlotte Lozier Institute  |  .

    Issues in Law and Medicine is a peer-reviewed professional journal that has been published twice a year since 1985. It is currently cosponsored by the Watson Bowes Research Institute and the National Legal Center for the Medically Dependent & Disabled, Inc. The new issue (spring 2017) includes a fine article by CLI associate scholar Nora Sullivan, M.P.A., cowritten with Dr. Eoghan de Faoite., an Irish physician committed to the sanctity of human life. This edition of the journal includes many other articles of current significance. We summarize them here. Further information about the journal and how to access current and past articles can be found at http://issuesinlawandmedicine.com/. We highly recommend ILM.

    View More

  • Canada May Make Mentally Ill Subject to Assisted Suicide

      |  

    Just two years ago, Canada’s Supreme Court decriminalized physician-assisted suicide (PAS) and euthanasia in its decision in Carter v. Canada. Now Canada is considering explicitly creating eligibility for PAS and euthanasia to those suffering from mental illnesses.

    View More

  • Q&A with the Scholars: Life-Affirming Care and Pregnancy Help Centers

    Margaret H. (Peggy) Hartshorn, Ph.D.  |  

    Margaret H. “Peggy” Hartshorn, Ph.D., served as President of Heartbeat International from 1993 to 2016 and is now the group’s chairman of the board. Under Peggy’s leadership, Heartbeat has grown to become the most expansive network of pregnancy help ministries in the world, with over 2,000 affiliated pregnancy help centers, medical clinics, maternity homes, adoption agencies, and abortion recovery programs located in 48 countries on six continents. In this interview, she discusses her lengthy experience operating and managing a network of life-affirming pregnancy help centers both in the United States and abroad.

    View More

  • Q&A with the Scholars: Science, Ethics, and Fetal Tissue

    Tara Sander Lee, Ph.D.  |  

    Tara Sander Lee, Ph.D., is a Molecular and Cell Biologist with over 15 years of experience in academic research and healthcare. In this interview, she discusses genetic testing for diagnosis and treatment of children and the ethical and scientific issues surrounding the use of fetal tissue procured from abortion for research.

    View More

  • Written Testimony of Sheila Page, D.O., in Support of Texas Bill to Prohibit Dismemberment Abortions

    Sheila Page, D.O.  |  

    On Wednesday, February 15, 2017, the Texas Committee of Health and Human Services held a hearing regarding Texas Senate Bill 415 (SB 415). SB 415 prohibits dismemberment abortions, in which a person, with the purpose of causing the death of an unborn child, dismembers the unborn child and extracts the unborn child one piece at a time from the uterus. Charlotte Lozier Institute Associate Scholar Sheila Page, D.O., submitted the following written testimony in support of SB 415.

    View More

  • Nat Hentoff, Pro-Life Journalist Extraordinaire

    Tim Bradley  |  .

    Few people have ever heard of Ana Rosa Rodriguez. But that is not the fault of Nat Hentoff, the renowned jazz critic, author, and syndicated columnist who died in Manhattan on January 7 at 91. You see, Mr. Hentoff was also a superb investigative reporter, one who was relentless at digging out the truth and fearless in telling it.

    View More

  • Q&A with the Scholars: The Science of Fetal Pain

    Sheila Page, D.O.  |  

    Sheila Page, D.O., is board certified in Neuromusculoskeletal Medicine and Osteopathic Manipulative Therapy, and treats a wide spectrum of patients from the newborn to the elderly, including patients with irreversible and terminal illness. Dr. Page has a special interest in children with disabilities, particularly those whose burden of care is difficult and who have been given little hope for a better quality of life. In this interview, she discusses palliative care and the science of fetal pain.

    View More

  • Utah Considers Ban on Telemedicine Abortions

      |  

    A bill prohibiting doctors from issuing prescriptions for drugs to cause abortion via remote video or telephone conference passed Utah’s House Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology Standing Committee on January 30.

    View More

  • Letter from Aaron Kheriaty, M.D., to American Medical Association in Opposition to Physician-Assisted Suicide

    Charlotte Lozier Institute  |  .

    For almost a quarter of a century, the American Medical Association (AMA) has opposed physician-assisted suicide, stating that it is “fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer, would be difficult or impossible to control, and would pose serious societal risks.” In strong language, the AMA has concluded that “permitting physicians to engage in assisted suicide would ultimately cause more harm than good” and that physicians “should not abandon a patient once it is determined that cure is impossible.”

    View More

  • Written Testimony of George Delgado, M.D., F.A.A.F.P., in Support of Colorado Abortion Pill Reversal Bill

    Charlotte Lozier Institute  |  .

    On Thursday, February 9, 2017, the Colorado House Health, Insurance and Environment Committee held a hearing regarding House Bill 1086 (HB 1086), the Abortion Pill Reversal Information Act. HB 1086 provides that prior to initiating a chemical abortion, a physician must alert the woman to the fact that it may be possible to reverse the abortion should she change her mind and that information on the possibility of reversal is available in state-prepared materials.

    View More

  • Written Testimony of Tara Sander Lee, Ph.D., in Support of Texas Bill to Prohibit Human Fetal Tissue Research

    Tara Sander Lee, Ph.D.  |  

    On Wednesday, February 15, 2017, the Texas Committee of Health and Human Services held a hearing regarding Texas Senate Bill 8 (SB 8). SB 8 prohibits partial-birth abortions, prohibits donation of human fetal tissue except by certain authorized facilities to accredited universities, and prohibits the purchase or sale of human fetal tissue. Charlotte Lozier Institute Associate Scholar Tara Sander Lee, Ph.D., submitted the following written testimony in support of SB 8.

    View More

  • Video: Dr. Joel McGuirk and the Adult Stem Cell Revolution

    Charlotte Lozier Institute  |  .

    Today the Charlotte Lozier Institute releases its sixth in its series of Stem Cell Research Facts videos. This story features the work of Dr. Joseph McGuirk, an adult stem cell expert at the University of Kansas Hospital, and tells the story of Chance Runnion’s recovery from leukemia after an adult stem cell transplant.

    View More

  • Q&A with the Scholars: Science and the Beginning of Human Life

    Maureen Condic, Ph.D.  |  

    Maureen Condic, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Neurobiology and Anatomy at the University of Utah. She has been a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life, a distinguished group of physicians, scientists, and theologians from the international community whose mission it is to study questions and issues regarding the promotion and defense of human life from an interdisciplinary perspective, since 2014. In this interview, she discusses the beginning of human life and the moral status of the human being.

    View More

  • Transcript of Remarks of Chuck Donovan on the Release of “Abortion Worldwide Report”

    Charles A. “Chuck” Donovan  |  

    On January 25, Charlotte Lozier Institute President Chuck Donovan presented opening remarks at the Family Research Council during an event launching the major report entitled, “Abortion Worldwide Report: 100 Countries, 1 Century, 1 Billion Babies.” The report, authored by William Robert Johnston, Ph.D., and Thomas W. Jacobson, M.A., is the first to systematically track reported abortions in 100 nations, territories, and regions, from the year of authorization through 2015.

    View More
  • Jennifer Lahl

    Q&A with the Scholars: Surrogacy and Assisted Reproductive Technology

    Jennifer Lahl, R.N., M.A.  |  

    Jennifer Lahl, R.N., M.A., is founder and president of The Center for Bioethics and Culture Network. Lahl couples her 25 years of experience as a pediatric critical care nurse, a hospital administrator, and a senior-level nursing manager with a deep passion to speak for those who have no voice. In this interview, she discusses surrogacy and assisted reproductive technology.

    View More

  • Lessons from the Netherlands: Proceed with Caution

      |  

    The doctor asked the elderly Dutch woman’s family members to hold her down while the fatal dose was administered. The woman was suffering from dementia and had previously affirmed that she wanted to be euthanized “at the right time,” but the determination of the “right time” for her to die was apparently made without her consultation.

    View More

  • A Person’s a Person: Inconsistent Treatment of the Unborn in the Law

      |  

    Women in the United States have possessed a broad legal right to abortion since Roe v. Wade and its companion case were handed down by the Supreme Court in 1973. Outside of the abortion context, though, the unborn child possesses broad legal rights in American property, torts, and criminal law.

    View More

  • Q&A with the Scholars: Down Syndrome and Prenatal Testing

    Charlotte Lozier Institute  |  .

    I believe that the decision to abort is responsible for far more sadness and family difficulties than the acceptance of a child with Down syndrome who truly does bring a family’s capacity for love to a whole new level.

    View More

  • Alabama Supreme Court Rules in Support of Unborn Life

      |  

    Kimberly Stinnett learned from her obstetrician on May 9, 2012, that she was pregnant. Stinnett called her doctor’s answering service just two days later when she experienced fever and abdominal cramps. Karla Kennedy, M.D., called back and told Stinnett to report to the emergency room at a nearby hospital. Kennedy was not Stinnett’s regular obstetrician, but was sharing calls with him that weekend.

    View More

  • Q&A with the Scholars: Practicing Maternal and Fetal Medicine

    Steve Calvin, B.S., M.D.  |  

    Pregnancies are the most momentous event in our lives—both for those who are born and for those who become mothers, when they give birth. Pregnancy is most often a normal life event. But even normal pregnancy and birth can become complicated and can lead to harm to the mother and the baby. The challenge is to provide care that recognizes these two realities.

    View More

  • Lawsuit Filed Against New Mexico Abortion Center

      |  

    Jessica Duran underwent an abortion at Southwestern Women’s Options (SWO), an abortion center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in October 2012. Last week she filed a lawsuit against the abortion center and its licensed physicians in Second Judicial District Court for the County of Bernalillo.

    View More

  • CDC: Abortion Is Now at “Historic Lows”

    Genevieve Plaster, M.A.  |  

    In late November, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that abortion in the United States has fallen to “historic lows” – with these most recent data revealing the lowest abortion rate since 1971, two years before the legalization of abortion nationwide via Roe v. Wade.

    View More

  • France’s Act of Censorship Embraces Fear

    Tim Bradley  |  .

    On June 25, 2014, France’s Superior Council of Audiovisual Content reprimanded four television channels for airing a 30-second version of Dear Future Mom during commercial breaks. Created for World Down Syndrome Day, the video features 15 young people diagnosed with Down syndrome. In the video, the young men and women respond to a concerned mother who has just learned her unborn child faces the same diagnosis.

    View More

  • What Happens Next If Roe Is Overturned?

      |  

    A legislator in Indiana has announced plans to introduce a bill that would ban abortion in that state when its legislature convenes in January. In Texas, lawmakers introduced several pro-life measures on November 14, including a proposed amendment to the state constitution prohibiting abortion to the extent permitted by federal law.

    View More