Mulling Late Abortions

"The ultra-sound shows the fetus has a congenital abnormality" are the last words a pregnant woman wants to hear from her doctor. When it does happen, she faces a difficult choice -- raise a child that might require life-long care and medical treatment, or have a late abortion.

Technically, this is one that takes place after the 23rd week. The most common reason is that doctors have identified anomalies and advise what's known as a "therapeutic termination."

But with Germany's Federal Statistics Office reporting that late abortions are on the rise, the government plans to take measures to curb the trend.

The governing coalition's parliamentary leaders, Christian Democrat Volker Kauder and Social Democrat Peter Struck, met with the heads of the Protestant and Catholic Churches in Germany, Bishop Wolfgang Huber and Cardinal Karl Lehmann, on Tuesday.

Struck said his party saw no need to change the laws regarding abortion. The two governing parties, however, had agreed to review the legislation in their coalition agreement.

Disability alone no reason for abortion

Before having an abortion even within the standard 12 weeks permitted in Germany, a woman must first visit a counseling center -- although she is not required to explain why she doesn't want to carry the fetus to full term.

Conservatives are now calling for the introduction of the same obligatory counseling session for women considering a late termination, as well as the three-day consideration period.

"A suspected disability alone does not justify a termination," said Johannes Singhammer of the Christian Democrats (CDU).

The CDU has the backing of the German Chamber of Physicians, which supports the three-day consideration period and also proposes limiting women's autonomy of choice.

Financial reform

More than 120,000 abortions are carried out in Germany every year, around 80 percent of which are paid by health insurance funds or -- if there are valid medical or social reasons -- through social welfare schemes.

Further reforms to abortion legislation up for discussion are financially motivated. A woman having an abortion doesn't have to pay for the procedure. Conservatives are now proposing that women should take on at least part of the cost.

"I think that the women also have to assume a share of the responsibility. And if they are able to assume a share of the financial costs, then we need to make that possible," said Helma Orosz, a Christian Democrat and social affairs minister in the state of Saxony.

But family counseling associations, like Pro Familia, say that plans to bill patients depending on their incomes would cause a lot of problems.

"If your income is very low already, and if the amount you have to pay increases -- meaning that women would have to come up with the 400 euros ($500) that an abortion costs on the average -- then it would put many of them in a difficult situation," said Pro Familia doctor Christina Schneider. "I don't believe that's an appropriate way to reduce the number of abortions, if that's what politicians who support this are thinking."

Further factors

Some lawmakers say the issue isn't just about money, but also about protecting the lives of the unborn. Pro Familia says experiences at its centers show that finances do not always play a key role when it comes to abortion -- and that women who want an abortion will get one.

Doctors also fear that forcing women to bear the costs of the procedure would bring a host of other problems.

"In some circumstances, women might try to save money by going to colleagues who were willing to do it on the cheap," said Matthias David from Berlin's Charité clinic. "Maybe they wouldn't go to doctors at all, and would try to find the means for non-medical abortions. Maybe they would begin going abroad again, as they did for awhile, when women went to the Netherlands because it didn't cost as much for the procedure. From a medical viewpoint, that would not be a practice we would welcome."

Boosting the birth-rate

It isn't clear how much money the government would save if these rules go into effect. But some ministers already know how they would spend it -- trying to boost the birth rate in Germany.

"The money we would save could be used to provide more support for those who -- for whatever reason -- are trying to have a child using in-vitro fertilization," said Orosz. "These techniques require a lot more commitment on the part of those involved, some of whom are needy, and to be fair they should also benefit from taxpayer contributions."