Wisconsin Pro Life Coalition Dismayed About Betrayal, but Vows To Keep Working

With the close of the two-year legislative session, the Republican majority in the Assembly and the Senate failed once again to pass legislation prohibiting the trade and use of the body parts of aborted babies and promoting ethical alternatives.

Heal Without Harm (HWH), a coalition of the state’s major pro-life organizations and their tens of thousands of pro-life voters, is dismayed that Republican leaders took such pains to block the advancement of the pioneering bill package known as the Heal Without Harm Legislative Initiative. This was a betrayal of their pro-life constituents.

Despite this failure, the HWH Coalition is extremely proud of the authors and key medical researchers for their advocacy. Sen. Terry Moulton (R-Chippewa Falls) and Rep. Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc) authored two complementary bills, the “Fetal Remains Respect Act” (SB 423/AB 549) and the “Unborn Child Disposition and Anatomical Gift Act” (SB 424/AB 550). These bills would have banned the sale and use of body parts from aborted babies and informed parents about the ability to donate their miscarried or stillborn child’s tissue for research. The HWH Coalition also commends Rep. André Jacque (R-De Pere), Rep. Kathy Bernier (R-Lake Hallie), and the 36 additional co-sponsors for their tireless advocacy, both publicly and behind the scenes.

continue at Heal Without Harm 

B-l-u-e-W-a-v-e

Wisconsin Health Without Harm initiative pulled from committees without notice

The Heal Without Harm (HWH) Legislative Initiative – SB 423/AB 549 and SB 424/AB 550 (Sen. Terry Moulton, R-Chippewa Falls, and Rep. Joel Kleefisch, R-Oconomowoc) – would ban the sale and use of the body parts of aborted babies and instead encourage the donation of tissue for research from children who are stillborn or miscarried.

Without notice, AB 549 and AB 550 have been pulled from their previously assigned committees and put into the Committee on Assembly Organization.

The public has a right to know why these bills were moved and if the committee has any intention of sending them to the floor for a vote.

Please call the members of the Committee on Assembly Organization and ask them:

1. Why were AB 549 and AB 550 moved to this committee?
2. Does the committee intend to advance these bills so they can receive a floor vote?

There is precious little time left this legislative session for these bills to advance, so please take action now!

Questions? Take some time to visit healwithoutharm.org to learn more about this critical issue.

HWH Coalition Welcomes Introduction of AB 549 and AB 550 in the Wisconsin Assembly

via ProLifeWI (it is fantastic to see these four organizations collaborate on this)

The Heal Without Harm (HWH) Coalition, comprised of member organizations Pro-Life Wisconsin, Wisconsin Right to Life, Wisconsin Catholic Conference, and Wisconsin Family Action, welcomes the introduction of AB 549 and AB 550.

These two complementary bills, the Fetal Remains Respect Act (SB 423/AB 549) and the Unborn Child Disposition and Anatomical Gift Act (SB 424/AB 550), authored by Sen. Terry Moulton (R-Chippewa Falls) and Rep. Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc), make up the Heal Without Harm Legislative Initiative. This Initiative seeks to demonstrate respect for unborn children by 1) outlawing the future exploitation of aborted children for fetal body parts (defined as tissue, organ or other part of an aborted unborn child); and 2) providing scientists with ethical sources of fetal tissue.

Wisconsin has an extraordinary opportunity to lead the nation by championing research that is ethical, innovative, and effective. We look forward to a thoughtful public debate on these bills at a public hearing and their enactment into law.

healwithoutharm.org

TheCapTimes op-ed: Fetal tissue from abortions is (still) not needed for research or medical treatments

Two workers make openings in chicken eggs in preparation for production of measles vaccine.

Two bills have recently been introduced in the Wisconsin Legislature to provide a path forward for biomedical research that honors the dignity of the human beings that it is meant to serve. These are the Fetal Remains Respect Act and the Unborn Child Disposition and Anatomical Gift Act, part of the Heal Without Harm Legislative Initiative. Contrary to what some claim, these bills do not stifle research. As scientists, we wholeheartedly support this initiative to support and advocate for biomedical research that benefits all human persons, without sacrificing one for another.

These bills come on the heels of a yearlong investigation of the abortion industry by the U.S. House Select Investigative Panel. The final report corrects many false and misleading statements regarding the role of fetal tissue in science and medicine. In nearly 100 years of unrestricted research, the panel investigation confirms, “not a single clinical treatment has been developed from human fetal tissue.” Vaccines for polio, measles, and mumps were never produced using human fetal tissue but rather used monkey cells, chicken eggs, and nonfetal human cells. None of the 75 vaccines available in the U.S. is produced using fresh fetal tissue. The continued use of certain “cell lines” derived from aborted fetal tissue to produce a small portion of vaccines (less than 15 percent) is due more to the high cost of switching than to any scientific reason. In regard to development of new vaccines, greater than 98 percent of research articles published on Zika do not use fetal tissue. Conversely, adult blood cells recently led to a breakthrough in vaccine development for Cytomegalovirus (CMV), a virus affecting brain development in a way similar to Zika.

continue at The Cap Times

HT WCC

Wis State bills introduced to prohibit sale of baby parts

Heal Without Harm legislative initiative introduced

On Thursday, March 9th, 2017, State Sen. Terry Moulton and State Rep. Joel Kleefisch, along with Sens. Vukmir, Testin, Stroebel, Craig and Nass and Rep. Bernier, introduced the Heal Without Harm Legislative Initiative.

This package of two complementary bills, the Fetal Remains Respect Act and the Unborn Child Disposition and Anatomical Gift Act, seeks to demonstrate respect for unborn children by 1) outlawing the future exploitation of aborted children for fetal body parts (defined as tissue, organ or another part of an aborted unborn child); and 2) providing families, doctors and scientists with ethical sources of fetal tissue.

The Fetal Remains Respect Act prohibits the trade and use of fetal tissue derived from the intentional taking of a human life after Jan. 1, 2017.

The Unborn Child Disposition and Anatomical Gift Act requires health care facilities to inform parents of the ability to offer an anatomical gift from their stillborn or miscarried child.

Read the rest HERE.

Public records request reveals University of Wisconsin and Planned Parenthood lied about baby parts

MADISON, Wis. – An Alliance Defending Freedom public records request has revealed that Planned Parenthood’s Wisconsin affiliate provided researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison with the hearts and brains of unborn babies up to 18 weeks old and within five minutes of being aborted despite the fact that both UW and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin have denied any such exchange.

The revelation comes on the heels of the state Senate’s passage Wednesday of a bill that will significantly restrict tax funding for Planned Parenthood if the governor signs the measure, and comes in the midst of discussion in the Assembly on a bill that would ban research at UW on recently aborted babies.

“Planned Parenthood has once again demonstrated its willingness to cover up its role in the gruesome baby parts trade,” said ADF Senior Counsel Matt Bowman. “Both Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and UW-Madison publicly denied they had any arrangement to supply baby parts from women undergoing abortion to researchers conducting gruesome experiments, but the documents we obtained prove they were not telling the truth.”

News of the baby parts exchange between Planned Parenthood and UW first broke on the ADF “Freedom Matters” podcast last Friday. The documents ADF obtained through its state records request include forms and letters from the university and its researchers clearly indicating their arrangement with Planned Parenthood to obtain the baby parts, which were used in medical research that resulted in published studies on fetal hearts and fetal brains in 2014.

continue at Alliance

Also: Four University of Wisconsin Leaders who Advocate for Abortion

HT Pro-Life Wis

Wis. GOP Leader Lies About Aborted Fetal Tissue Research

Last week, Media Trackers, a state-based conservative watchdog group, reported that the University of Wisconsin – Madison for at least two years worked directly with Planned Parenthood’s Madison, Wisconsin clinic to obtain up to 40 aborted fetal tissue samples for an academic study. The revelation was the latest in a long-running investigation that Media Trackers launched in the wake of undercover videos released last summer showing Planned Parenthood officials callously negotiating the sale price of aborted fetal body parts to tissue suppliers and academic and scientific researchers.

Stunningly, on Sunday, Speaker Robin Vos, the top Republican lawmaker in the Wisconsin Assembly, took to the airwaves to dismiss pro-life lawmakers pushing for legislation that would ban the use of aborted fetal tissue in research in Wisconsin.

Vos claims to be a conservative.

Vos claims to be pro-life.

Vos claims to be “disgusted” by the Center for Medical Progress videos released last summer.

Vos lied when he claimed on television (2:15 mark onward) that aborted fetal tissue is not used in research in Wisconsin.

continue at The Resurgent

University of Wisconsin doctors admitted to needing freshly killed babies for their research.

Image

HT BC Aunt

Pro-Life WI: State Assembly Passes Bill Defunding Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin

via Pro-Life Wisconsin

State Assembly Passes Bill Defunding Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin

They cannot be trusted, says Pro-Life Wisconsin

A bill diverting federal Title X Family Planning funds away from Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin (PPWI) passed the State Assembly today. Assembly Bill (AB) 310 passed on a 60-35 vote.

“We thank Assembly Republicans for taking another bite out of Wisconsin’s abortion giant,” said PLW State Director Dan Miller. “Abortion is not healthcare. Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, a non-profit organization with a net worth of over $10 million that profits from killing unborn babies, should not be considered a healthcare provider. Wisconsin cannot continue to throw money at organizations that perform abortions.”

Assembly Bill 310 would redirect federal Title X family planning funds away from organizations that perform abortions to public entities including state, county, and local health departments and clinics. Currently, $3.5 million annually in Title X funds are granted directly to PPWI as they are the sole applicant for the funds in Wisconsin. The legislation would require the state Department of Health Services to apply for the federal Title X grant and, if awarded the grant, give public health entities and programs first priority for funding. It would exclude organizations that provide abortion services from receiving any of the funds.

“Assembly Bill 310 respects the consciences of Wisconsin taxpayers who oppose the use of public funds for abortion,” said PLW Legislative Director Matt Sande. “Family planning funds undeniably free up resources within receiving organizations, like Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, to engage in the surgical abortion business. And despite their protestations, it is an open question whether they engage in the grisly trade of aborted fetal body parts. They cannot be trusted and are not entitled to the people of Wisconsin’s money.”

Pro-Life Wisconsin thanks Rep. Andre Jacque (R-De Pere) for his strong leadership on AB 310. We urge the Wisconsin Legislature and Governor Walker to keep moving down the long road toward totally defunding Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin of all taxpayer dollars. The 2011-2013 state biennial budget began the journey by prohibiting state and federal Title V Maternal and Child Health funds from going to organizations or their affiliates that perform or refer for abortions, redirecting them to public entities.

Reminder: Action Item: Get Wis. Pro-Life Bill Scheduled to Vote Tomorrow

It is crucial that an UNAMENDED AB 305 gets scheduled to vote tomorrow. Leadership needs to step up. Call AND email Vos and Steineke to let them know (see below).

Need help on what to say? Here you go:

"Please ban the sale and use of aborted fetal body parts by scheduling and passing AB 305 tomorrow, with no gutting amendments! Thank you."

Rep. Robin Vos
(Assembly Speaker)
(608) 266-9171
Rep.Vos@legis.wisconsin.gov

Rep. Jim Steineke
(Assembly Majority Leader)
(608) 266-2418
Rep.Steineke@legis.wisconsin

details at Pro-Life Wisconsin

Wis Republicans did not include pro-life bills for vote in upcoming session

via Wisconsin Family Council

What’s going on?

Shenanigans are going on—that’s what!

As unbelievable as it may seem, the supposedly pro-life Assembly Republican leadership did not include Assembly Bill 305 or AB 311 on its calendar for the floor session this coming Thursday, September 24. They’ve included AB 310, a bill that redirects federal Title X funds—about $3.5 million a year—away from Planned Parenthood. And that’s good. But all three bills need to be on the calendar forthis Thursday’s floor period.

Late last week, Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos convened a study group to work on a compromise for AB 305. We don’t need a compromise, especially not one that would gut the bill.

Two of the three people on the group, Representatives John Nygren (co-chair of the powerful Joint Finance Committee) and Amy Loudenbeck, are known to be opposed to the bill. That means the deck is already stacked against keeping the bill as it is.

Wisconsin Catholic Conference strongly supports AB 305 and testified at the public hearing

BAN SALE AND USE OF FETAL BODY PARTS-SUPPORT ASSEMBLY BILL 305

BACKGROUND

Senator Duey Stroebel (R-Saukville) and Representative André Jacque (R-De Pere) have introduced Substitute Amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 305 to ban the sale and use of fetal body parts procured from induced abortions that take place after January 1, 2015. The ban would not affect research on existing fetal-derived cell lines in Wisconsin, but any person who violates the ban would be guilty of a Class H Felony and be fined up to $50,000.

The amended bill passed out of committee on September 10 and is now available for a vote on the floor of the Assembly.

WCC POSITION

The Wisconsin Catholic Conference strongly supports AB 305 and testified at the public hearing that scientific progress can and must proceed in an ethical manner without commodifying human beings.

Wisconsin Catholic Conference

They appear to also be trying to integrate some more modern functionality to their website, an RSS feed which we now have added on the side, they have been on Facebook as well for a while now.... so might as well open a Twitter account and sync it to what gets posted on Facebook.

BTW, I forced myself to watch the debate last night.  People are always trying to talk me out of it but I will vote Rand Paul in the primary.  He's the only one who has any kind of reasonable foreign policy, and it stands out in the debates.  Everybody else on foreign policy sounds like John McCain in 2008 pounding his fist on the podium screaming about bombing Russia.  I expect him to stay in the after the other candidates begin bowing out and could be a sleeper for a late surge.  People continue to discount him because he has different policy than the cookie cutter models of the rest of the GOP, or the Trump policy of doing "special stuff."

That said, Carly Fiorina continues to impress and is certainly more than a "token woman" candidate that some touted her to be.  But ultimately, her McCain like policy (she was an adviser to McCain's presidential campaign) are not going to win.

Several doctors of the Medical College of Wisconsin write Op-Ed in JS: Use of fetal tissue is unethical and unnecessary

This commentary was written by Tara Sander Lee, PhD; Kathleen M. Schmainda, PhD; Maria B. Feeney, PhD; William Drobyski, M.D.; Bryon D. Johnson, PhD; and Keri Hainsworth, PhD, all of the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Unprecedented attention has been given to Assembly Bill 305 in the Wisconsin Legislature, which would restrict the use of abortion-derived fetal tissue for research. Opponents of the bill, including those in biomedical research, have openly shared arguments against such restrictions.

However, we, who are also scientists and doctors, do not share this view. We do not agree that research using human fetal or embryonic tissue from abortions or procedures such as IVF is ethical or a requisite approach for advancing scientific inquiry or preventing suffering.

The argument that fetal-derived tissues must be used in research to develop medical treatments is false. Many therapies have been developed using cell lines not of fetal origin, including insulin for diabetes (produced in bacteria), Herceptin for breast cancer and tissue plasminogen activator for heart attack, stroke and pulmonary embolism (both developed in Chinese hamster ovary cells).

continue at JS

Go read it.  Perhaps the most brilliantly logical explanation to date on the matter.

And don't forget this point:

Wisconsin legislators are currently considering a law that would ban the use of fetuses or fetal body parts obtained through abortion from being used in “medical and scientific experiments.” MediaTrackers writes (emphasis mine):

University of Wisconsin officials oppose the plan, saying it will shut down revenue-generating research involving fetal tissue. A Wisconsin Public Radio news update on the legislation claimed:

“A ban on selling and using fetal tissue gets an Assembly Committee hearing on Tuesday. The sale of fetal tissue is already illegal nationally, but the bill would make it illegal for researchers to use fetal tissue in the state.”

MediaTrackers says this is incorrect, and that the legislation “does not prohibit researchers from using fetal tissue,” but would “prevent them from using fetal tissue acquired from induced abortions.”

And this is how we know it's not the science but the ideology that is really at the heart of the matter.

HT GL

Hundreds protest Planned Parenthood in Madison

MADISON -- Prayer.

That’s what it will take to end abortion.

That’s what rush hour commuters saw as more than 200 people prayed on the sidewalks near the Planned Parenthood clinic on Madison’s east side to do their part to see that facility close and protect the lives of the unborn.

The protest on Monday, Aug. 24, was held in unity with nationwide protests following reports of Planned Parenthood harvesting and selling the organs and tissue of aborted babies.

As people's workdays ended, they arrived at the Orin Rd. site for the 5 p.m. protest, despite the unseasonably cold and gloomy late August weather.

continue at MadCatHerald 

University of Wisconsin faculty defends baby parts sale, confirms research needs freshly killed babies

In July, Reps. Andre Jacque (R-De Pere) and Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc) introduced legislation that would ban the sale of fetal body parts in the state of Wisconsin and not allow federal funding to go toward Planned Parenthood. The LaCrosse Tribune reported that the legislation was a response to the scandal surrounding Planned Parenthood buying the body parts of aborted babies.

Now, nearly 700 faculty members from University of Wisconsin have signed a letter arguing that the bill would cut off “hope for patients” and deter biomedical students and the biotechnology industry from coming to their University because it shows “that Wisconsin is no place to do business.”

The letter says, “We wonder whether legislators have considered the ethical implications of denying current and future patients the benefits of the research that would be blocked by this legislation. Research done with cell lines derived from fetal tissue has benefited millions in the form of vaccines and treatments for diseases such as cancer, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, heart disease, and viral and bacterial infections.”

Then, the letter alleges that prohibiting research on aborted babies’ body parts would “ risk untold numbers of lives” because they use it to find critical vaccines. The faculty explained, “The cell lines derived from fetal tissue are commonly used for research in laboratories worldwide. Other tissues and cells, such as those derived from miscarriages cannot be substituted for this research, despite the claims of the proponents of this ban.” [Get that?]

continue at LifeNews

Important to remember that the University of Wisconsin wanted a late term abortion site on campus so they could get (as Jill Stanek pointed out about StemExpress) "organs from very freshly killed babies."

In fact, that is exactly what UW just stated in this letter, they need freshly killed babies.  Let's read it one more time.

"Other tissues and cells [oh yeah, and organs and heads], such as those derived from miscarriages, cannot be substituted for this research, despite the claims of the proponents of this ban."

UW seeks to deflect and turn this into the same as the embryonic vs ethical(or "adult") stem cell debate, although that hardly is a scientific debate anymore considering what a bust embryonic research has been.

Unclear if the signatories support some of the laws broken by Planned Parenthood recently, including sale of parts without consent of the mother.

And they say we inflate our position, LOL!

"There is no suitable substitute for the HEK293 cell. To attempt to find a replacement for these or for cells derived in the future, in all their diverse applications, would cost billions and risk untold numbers of lives."

It's probably best for UW if the body count is left "untold."  One has to wonder if billions of dollars were spent on ethical research, could an alternative flu vaccine be created.  After all, there are ethical alternatives to many vaccines used today.

Bishop Morlino, pro-life leaders support ban of selling fetal body parts in WI

MADISON -- “People can never be reduced to things,” said Bishop Robert C. Morlino of Madison as he concluded his testimony before the State Assembly Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety on August 11.

Bishop Morlino spoke in support of Assembly Bill 305 (AB 305), which would make it illegal to sell and use fetal body parts from an abortion in the state of Wisconsin.

The bill was authored by State Representatives André Jacque (R-DePere) and Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc) with support from State Senator Duey Stroebel (R-Saukville) and other state lawmakers.

It comes after videos were released reportedly showing discussion among Planned Parenthood officials relating to the sale of fetal body parts.

The bill was introduced to the committee on August 11. Community members, including Bishop Morlino, came out to testify in support of the bill, as did those who were opposed to its passage.

“Every fertilized egg is a unique individual of the human species,” said Bishop Morlino during his testimony. “To say that a unique individual of the human species is not a human being is quite a jump, but then to dismember it in precisely such a way that it is useful for other purposes makes a person into a thing,” he added. “Our human reason tells us that human people are never things.”

Opponents of the bill made the argument that the ban could halt important life-saving research [Soylent Green much?] in the health care field where researchers use fetal body parts for their work.

continue at MadCatHerald 

WI Bills Circulating in State Legislature to Ban the Sale and Use of Aborted Baby Body Parts

State Representatives Andre Jacque (R-DePere) and Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc) are currently circulating for co-sponsorship legislation that would ban the sale and use of aborted human fetal body parts. Representative Jacque is also circulating for co-sponsorship legislation that would continue the defunding of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin (PPWI) that began with Governor Walker’s first budget in 2011.


Banning the sale and use of aborted human fetal body parts (LRB 1645/2)

LRB 1645/2 would prohibit the sale and use of aborted human fetal body parts. The bill bans persons from knowingly and for valuable consideration acquiring, receiving, or transferring a fetal body part. It also bans persons from knowingly providing, receiving, or using for experimentation a fetal body part. A fetal body part is a cell, tissue, organ, or other part of, or any material derived from any cell or tissue of, an unborn child who is aborted by an induced abortion. The legislation would also require the abortionist to determine, if medically possible, the gender of the preborn child and report it to the Department of Health Services (DHS). It also establishes new provisions on the proper disposal of aborted fetal remains, through either burial, interment, entombment, cremation, or incineration. The lack of current standard allows for disposal of fetal remains as trash or medical waste.

There is documented evidence of the UW-Madison conducting research on human fetal brain and pancreatic tissue. These preborn children did not consent to their abortions and certainly did not consent to experimentation. We expect Wisconsin’s medical research community to procure fetal tissue ethically; for example, from stillbirths or miscarriages with maternal consent.  Federal law prohibits the interstate trafficking of human fetal body parts. Wisconsin’s intrastate commercial activity must have a similar prohibition so that we can guarantee the highest ethical standards of academic research and medical care in our state.