U.S.
Bishops’ Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities Calls NIH’s Dr. Francis Collins
Defense of Using Baby Body Parts from Abortions for Research “Deeply
Disturbing”
December 18, 2018
WASHINGTON—Dr. Francis Collins, director of the
National Institutes of Health (NIH), recently defended current NIH research
that uses the body parts of babies destroyed by elective abortions and said
that fetal tissue research “will continue to be the mainstay.”
Greg Schleppenbach, Associate Director of the U.S.
Bishops’ Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities, responds with the following
statement:
“Dr. Collins’ comments are deeply disturbing.
Research using fetal tissue from aborted babies is unethical and should not
continue under his leadership. The use of fetal remains procured from abortions
can be interpreted as legitimizing abortion by saying it is an important source
for research. It also requires close collaboration with the abortion
industry. Every abortion stops a beating heart, unjustly denying a defenseless
human being of her or his life. There is nothing pro-life about further
violating these aborted babies by scavenging, even commodifying, their body
parts for use in research. The remains of aborted babies are human
remains and should be given the full respect they deserve. Millions of pro-life
Americans find such research morally offensive and do not want their tax
dollars to be used to pay for it.
Researchers have demonstrated the ability to both
pursue excellence in research and to avoid violating the rights and dignity of
nascent human beings. Dr. Collins can and should lead the NIH in a way that
honors both ends, incentivizing research that all Americans can support.”
--
Keywords: United States Conference of Catholic
Bishops, USCCB, Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities, Greg Schleppenbach, Dr.
Francis Collins, National Institutes of Health (NIH), elective abortions,
research, fetal tissue, abortion industry, unethical, commodifying, human remains,
tax dollars, pro-life, human life, human dignity, pro-life, human beings
###
Media Contact:
Judy Keane
202-541-3200