VIEWPOINT | Pro-abortion activists are the real threat to doctors and patients

Guest column by Dr. Patti Giebink

Samantha Chapman of the ACLU posed a question in these pages last month: Can politicians deny emergency care to pregnant people? Her “answer” was many paragraphs long and contained a multitude of mistruths. The correct answer is one sentence: No, politicians cannot deny emergency care to pregnant women, and none are trying to – at least, not the pro-life politicians that Ms. Chapman attempts to demonize. 

South Dakota’s law against induced abortion is abundantly clear that doctors can do whatever is necessary to save the life of a pregnant mother. As an experienced South Dakota physician, I – and my colleagues – know how to care for both patients involved when we care for pregnant women. So it’s unfortunate when political actors like Ms. Chapman attempt to sow doubt and fear anyway to convince South Dakotans that the radical pro-abortion constitutional amendment on the ballot this November is a necessity. In reality, it is a travesty.