PENNSYLVANIA, November 1, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) – A Pennsylvania state legislator has described miscarried babies as “just some mess on a napkin”.

Wendy Ullman, a Democrat representative from Bucks County, made the comment while opposing a bill put before the Pennsylvania House Health Committee that, if passed, would give parents the option for their unborn babies who die as the result of a miscarriage or an abortion to be either buried or cremated.

The bill, HB 1890, was passed by the Committee by 15 votes to 10, with all the Democrat affiliated representatives voting against the bill. It will now go to the full House for a vote.

While opposing the bill on Tuesday, Oct. 29, Ullman said: “It refers specifically to the product of conception after fertilization which covers an awful lot of territory. I think we all understand the concept of the loss of a fetus, but we’re also talking about a woman who comes into a facility and is having cramps and — not to be, not to be, concrete — an early miscarriage is just some mess on a napkin.”

The video of Ullman’s comments was first posted by The Pennsylvania Family Council, a pro-family, non-profit organization. Tom Shaheen, Vice President for Policy for Pennsylvania Family Institute, responded to Ullman’s comments in a statement saying “A miscarriage, no matter how early, does not result in a ‘mess on a napkin’ but the loss of a child. Each human life deserves respect, even when lost at an early stage in development.”

The insensitivity of the comment is highlighted by the fact that Representative Francis Ryan, who introduced the bill, has spoken publicly about the grief experienced by himself and his wife after losing children due to miscarriages. Following the vote on the bill he posted to Twitter, saying that the bill had brought back “painful memories”.

I am so thankful to Chair Kathy Rapp and Exec Director Whitney Metzler and my colleagues on the Health Committee for passing our HB 1890 concerning the disposition of fetal remains.



It brought back so many painful memories of the 3 children that we lost. pic.twitter.com/PIREl952Ey — Frank Ryan (@FrankRyanCPA) October 29, 2019

Ullman’s comments have attracted national attention, with coverage from the Daily Wire, Daily Caller and Washington Times. A variety of people, including several mothers who have lost children to miscarriages have used Twitter to express their disgust and hurt at the comments.

The Pennsylvania bill has been described as similar to the law in Indiana which requires the humane disposal of fetal remains, and which was upheld by the Supreme Court in May this year. Such laws are motivated in part by stories showing the remains of unborn babies being disposed of in ways that many find shocking.

It is perhaps worth noting that one potential impact of such a bill would be to limit the possibility of the harvesting of organs of aborted babies, such as has been reported through the undercover investigations of David Daleiden.