(CBN News) Planned Parenthood is trying to have it both ways when it comes to the reality of fetal heartbeats. The abortion giant now appears to admit the existence of a "heartbeat" while simultaneously denying the existence of a heart.
It gets complicated, but here's a breakdown of their heartbeat back-and-forth.
The organization had previously admitted to the existence of a "beating heart" in early stages of development. But it recently deleted that reference from its current website.
Its archived statement had acknowledged that at weeks 5-6 of pregnancy, "A very basic beating heart and circulatory system develop."
But the abortion giant is now trying to imply that fetal heartbeats aren't real, arguing instead on its website that it just "sounds like a heartbeat."
"It sounds like a heartbeat on an ultrasound, but it's not a fully-formed heart," Planned Parenthood now contends.
The debate exists because of six-week abortion bans or "fetal heartbeat bills." Planned Parenthood claims those bills are based on "a manipulative term deployed to justify banning abortion early in pregnancy."
In the past, Planned Parenthood cited the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), whose "Guide to Language and Abortion" said that "a fetal heartbeat exists only after the chambers of the heart have developed and can be detected via ultrasound, which typically occurs around 17 to 20 weeks' gestation," National Review (NR) reports.
But the group has slightly distanced themselves from ACOG's claim, writing in a recent footnote in a South Carolina court filing that "After consulting with experts," the group "understand(s) that a heart forms earlier than that."
ACOG is supposed to be a neutral association of medical experts, but is pro-abortion.
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As CBN News reported, in September ACOG penned a stunning op-ed in The Washington Post calling for abortion on demand – at any time and for any reason.
In addition to calling for no limits on abortion, the group claimed abortions are safe.
"It improves and saves lives, and it must be available without restrictions, without limitations, and without barriers — just as any other critical part of health care," wrote the board members.
Dr. Ingrid Skop, a board-certified OB-GYN who has practiced in Texas for nearly 30 years and serves as vice president and director of medical affairs at Charlotte Lozier Institute told CBN's Faith Nation "this brazen proclamation from the ACOG" is not a surprise.
"Sadly this is not surprising to me. I've seen a progression over the years of more and more pro-abortion stances taken by ACOG's leadership...(but) the reality is that only seven to 14 percent of practicing obstetricians will perform an elective abortion."
Skop added, "It's good that this discussion is happening so that the American public can come to the realization that yes, late abortions are happening, yes, they're dangerous, they are killing babies electively, healthy babies, in healthy mothers."
Tweet This: Planned Parenthood has admitted that unborn babies have beating hearts, stating on its website heartbeats develop at 5-6 weeks of pregnancy
Christopher Miller, a former clerk for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, noted that ACOG never provided an explanation for how they came to the conclusion that fetal heartbeats aren't present until later in pregnancy.
"One would reasonably expect ACOG, an organization that heralds itself as a 'premier professional membership organization' and a 'leading provider of authoritative scientific data,' to know all this. Instead, ACOG claimed that no heartbeat exists until 17-20 weeks because the heart's chambers are not formed until that point. That's false," he wrote in NR.
Editor's note: This article was published by CBN News and is reprinted with permission. The source article has been updated and PHN's reprint is updated to reflect that.
