Answering Our Call to Witness in Prenatal Genetic Counseling

Abstract

In this paper, I discuss prenatal screening, testing, and diagnosis, before highlighting the literature on the incidence of selective abortion after prenatal diagnosis. For Catholic health care professionals and institutions, the correlation between prenatal diagnosis and abortion is highly problematic. Several authors have discussed the concern of illicit cooperation with selective abortion in this context; and while avoiding any illicit cooperation is necessary, it is not sufficient. Given the biases against disability that exist in both medicine and society, Catholic health care professionals and institutions are called to witness to the ontological and moral truths of our faith regarding the unborn and persons with disabilities by offering prenatal genetic testing and counseling in a radically transformed way.