PSOL wants to overturn CFM rule that prevents abortion after 22 weeks

This Thursday (4), the PSOL presented a draft legislative decree (PDL) in the Chamber of Deputies to overturn Resolution No. 2,378/24 of the Federal Council of Medicine (CFM), which prohibits the performance of fetal asystole for the purpose of carrying out abortion after 22 weeks of gestation in case of rape. The PSOL proposal is signed by Erika Hilton (SP), leader of the PSOL-Rede federation.

Fetal asystole is a procedure that causes the death of babies in the mother’s womb using potassium chloride applied directly to the heart.

The CFM Resolution was published on Wednesday (3), a week after the Ministry of Health issued a note authorizing abortion up to nine months of pregnancy if the mother claims to have been raped.

Following guidance from the Ministry, the limitation for the procedure, which previously was 21 weeks and 6 days, no longer has this time limit. According to the folder, the procedure could be carried out through fetal asystole.

Amid criticism, the note was revoked, but the case raised awareness about the Lula government’s willingness to advance the abortion agenda.

“It was revealed today that the Federal Council of Medicine published a resolution that, in practice, prohibits doctors from performing legal abortions. According to the resolution, it is prohibited to perform asysophaly (sic), a procedure necessary for abortions of fetuses older than 22 weeks. That’s right: the Federal Council of Medicine wants to prevent the exercise of the rights of women and people who are pregnant as provided by law. And, in practice, if applied, the resolution will force rape victims, including children and adolescents, to have the children of those who raped them. Therefore, I am joining the efforts of other organizations, and presenting a Legislative Decree Project in the Chamber that puts an end to this resolution. This new attack by extremists and fundamentalists on the rights of women and people who carry their own bodies is complete nonsense, and we cannot remain silent or allow these advances”, wrote Erika Hilton on her profile on the social network X, this Thursday (4).

In the Resolution, the CFM highlights articles from the Federal Constitution, the Penal Code and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which reinforce the “inviolable right to life and that no one will be subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment”.

An excerpt from the American Convention on Human Rights is also cited, which says that “a person is every human being, and every person has the right to have their life respected, a right that must be protected by law and, in general, from the moment of conception. No one can be arbitrarily deprived of their life.”