Some Fear New Autism Diagnosis Method Could Lead to More Abortions
Labcorp, a top health care diagnostics company, recently patented a new diagnosis method that can detect autism. The method can even be used on unborn babies.
The technique takes tissue or a body sample, the Burlington Times-News reported. Right now, autism spectrum disorders are diagnosed solely on the basis of behavior. Testing may provide “insights into the biological basis of autism spectrum disorders through different lenses,” according to the Times-News. Labcorp’s researchers say genetic markers may indicate “the presence or an increased risk of developing autism spectrum disorders.”
The ability to identify autism in the womb is causing some concern.
Steve Silberman, a writer who received the Samuel Johnson Prize (now called the Baillie Gifford Prize) for his book on autism, expressed his fears on Twitter. “This makes me nervous,” he said.
Patent approved for gauging autism risk in fetuses. This makes me nervous. https://t.co/sBgazigZy4
— Steve Silberman (@stevesilberman) January 7, 2018
Retweeting Silberman, Twitter user Stephanie Nelson noted the high number of babies — 67 percent — aborted in the U.S. after they are prenatally diagnosed with Down syndrome. In countries around the world, that percentage is even higher.
https://twitter.com/stephanienels/status/950446274133876743
“This will likely not turn out to be much different,” Nelson said of the new autism testing method. She added that her nephew has autism. “The world is a better place because he is in it,” she wrote.
Also weighing in on the report was Russell Moore, head of the Southern Baptists’ Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.
“As the dad of one on the spectrum, this makes me nervous too,” he wrote, retweeing Silberman. “Children with autism are to be welcomed with love, not targeted for death.”
As the dad of one on the spectrum, this makes me nervous too. Children with autism are to be welcomed with love, not targeted for death. https://t.co/nxa96y5swC
— Russell Moore (@drmoore) January 8, 2018
Their concerns are not irrational. Just last month, journalist David Perry argued in The Nation for “the right to eugenic abortion.” Perry has a son with Down syndrome.
