A year after new abortion law passed

A year after abortion was decriminalised in Portugal, the Portuguese Medical Association has reworded its code of ethics to say that abortion is no longer considered an act of serious ethical misconduct. The new code simply says, “The physician must have respect for human life from the moment of its inception.”

Nonetheless, the code still avers that abortion is allowed only if it is essential to save a woman’s life. Pedro Nunes, the association’s president, said, “This code stresses that there currently isn’t a consensus surrounding the moment when life begins. This makes each physician responsible… for considering the moment when life begins.” After last year’s referendum, abortion is permitted up to the tenth week of pregnancy in registered clinics. ~ BMJ, October 11

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Michael Cook

Michael Cook edits BioEdge, a bioethics newsletter, and MercatorNet, an on-line magazine whose focus is human dignity. He writes from Sydney, Australia.

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