A SECOND OPINION
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I
read with interest Dr . Karen Berg ’ s article about her experiences as a Kentucky Senator . 1 As the only physician in the Kentucky Senate , she has an interesting perspective on some of the hottest topics being debated – but not the only perspective . She emphasized the fact that she is not on the Health and Welfare Committee , which doesn ’ t make sense since she is the only board-certified physician in the Kentucky Senate , but as she points
out , Frankfort is a place of politics , not logic . In previous sessions , bills addressing medical topics that weren ’ t so politically volatile weren ’ t divided by red or blue and I ’ m sure all senators would have been interested in listening to her .
Alas , surgical and medication abortion are front and center with this year ’ s election and those topics are divided , for the most part , between red and blue . And that is the reason she was not placed on the Health and Welfare Committee . The majority party has an agenda ( just like the minority party does ) and they do not match .
The primary reason they do not match , and the reason that she and I disagree , is because we see abortion from two different perspectives . I am writing this , in fact , so that medical students can appreciate that we doctors have differing opinions . I suspect students are inundated with the view from one side so heavily that they may not realize that there are opinions from people within their profession who think differently . I would also like them to see that Karen Berg and I serve as an example of how to express a differing opinion – politely .
The mottos of the different sides , “ pro-life ” and “ pro-choice ” actually give a strong indication of the perspectives that each side
In Response by FOREST W . ARNOLD , DO , MSC , FIDSA
holds . Pro-choice expresses the view of the mother . This was emphasized in an editorial recently in the Los Angeles Times which said , “ Reproductive freedom is about having the power to make choices . And that is something that we must vigilantly work for and protect at all levels of government .” 2 Tim Walz , the Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate , expressed this priority the same way when he referred to “ 50 years of personal autonomy ” in the debate with Republican Vice-Presidential candidate J . D . Vance . They both emphasize that a mother ’ s choice , her personal autonomy , is considered the ultimate good with no regard for the opinion of the unborn child . What kind of world would we live in , however , if our guiding moral was always our selfish choice ? It would be chaos .
On the other hand , pro-life expresses the view of the mother and the fetus . They both need an advocate and they both should have a representative . Dr . Berg mentioned House Bill 3 in 2022 that addressed medication assisted pregnancy termination . Reference was made to a review published in JAMA , which said that it is safe and effective 3 [ for the mother ]. It showed data that there is a “ risk ” for not terminating a pregnancy in up to 5 % of fetuses at 8-9 weeks gestation . 4 That is , there is a “ risk ” for the fetus to live despite the medication and a risk of only 19 out 20 fetuses dying as a result of it . A 95 % mortality rate is extremely high , so that medication has produced a multitude of verified deaths . Simultaneously , there is a new concern in the U . S . because the infant mortality rate is higher than several developed European countries . Furthermore , it rose to 5.6 % in the U . S . in 2022 . 5 The irony is that those who are upset that a fetus won ’ t die at 8 weeks because a medication mortality rate is only 95 % become concerned at 40 weeks if the child is threatening to be part of the 5.6 % infant mortality rate .
The U . S . is an inflection point . We ’ ve been here before and made wise choices ( albeit delayed ) for African Americans and women . Expanding our views hopefully leads to truth – truth is what mat-
32 LOUISVILLE MEDICINE OPINION