Woman bleeds out from miscarriage and put on breathing machine due to abortion laws

They're potential lives. Inside or outside the uterus, they're potential people.

Potential people may have immense value to their parents, and caring for them - inside or outside - is an essential form of health care for the parents. They're also sentient beings who should be treated humanely and spared unnecessary suffering.

But 24-weekers are not fully-realized actual people. Their brains haven't even reached "newborn kitten" levels of consciousness/awareness, let alone a level we could recognize as uniquely human. They don't try to play, learn, or interact outside of the most basic reflexes. They don't even reliably realize they're supposed to be breathing! (Mostly because they're not supposed to be breathing.)

/r/medicine Thread Parent