Our World

Abandoned Infants

The abandonment of infant babies has increased significantly over the years. Today I woke up to a front page article about a baby girl that was found on Wednesday, November 22-The day before Thanksgiving. She was found around a rural Lynden Township road. Her nickname, Grace, was given to her because of the conditions and luck of her findings. The temperatures were in the 40's and she was found relatively quickly, so she remains in good condition.

Unfortunately this is not the only abandonment of children, it is happening everywhere and unfortunately too often. In 1998 almost 32,000 babies were deserted in the local hospitals around their birthplace. The hospital costs are around $520 but the life of a young child is priceless. 50% of the babies discarded are found in the first 24 hours of their lives.

The Safe Haven Act has become an apparent law around many of the US states. In fact, 45 states have put this law into action. The law states that hospitals, police stations, fire stations, and many other public locations are now opted as safe havens. The parents of the infant will not be prosecuted to bring in a baby. The department of Children and Family Services are starting to keep more statistics on the abandonment of children and hopefully will make sure this law is helping the situation.

I think that the law is incredibly smart and extremely helpful in keeping fewer kids off the streets. It helps keep the kids safer and increases their chances of staying alive. It is still very wrong to neglect and desert your kid, but either way studies or statistics show it is happening, so why not give the kids a better chance to stay alive.

I strongly agree with the law. Many people are arguing with the expenses that are put on the shoulders of hospitals and other public locations. If you think about it though, it is a lot more expensive to pay for a mentally, physically, and emotionally unstable infant than it is a normal one. For all of us, we can help spread the news about the law and make sure that people know all about it.

posted by Anonymous @ 11/23/2006 04:18:00 PM