On January 19, the U.S. House will vote on H.R.3504, also known as the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. January 19 is also the day of the March for Life. Another pro-life group believes the House should vote on their bill, H.R.490, also called The Heartbeat Protection Act, on the day that thousands are expected to demonstrate against abortion.

While the original Born-Alive bill became law in 2002, the current version seeks to expand anti-infanticide protections for babies born alive during abortions, LifeSiteNews reported.

Susan B. Anthony List’s (SBA) National Campaign Chair Jill Stanek was once a nurse who witnessed babies who survived abortion left to die. She said:

Horrific crimes are taking place in abortion facilities around the country. Children born alive are denied medical care and left to die — cold, alone, abandoned and discarded like medical waste. From Kermit Gosnell’s ‘house of horrors,’ to a D.C. abortionist admitting he would not intervene to save the baby, to a former Planned Parenthood medical director stating that the main consideration when determining whether to provide lifesaving care is who’s watching, pleading ignorance is not an option. This is infanticide, plain and simple. Everyone should be able to agree on equal protection under the law for these children.

On the other hand, supporters of the Heartbeat Protection Act want their bill before the House that day. Faith2Action’s Janet Porter, an organizer of the bill said, “It’s the most protective incremental bill in existence.” The Heartbeat Protection Act would outlaw any abortion where the heartbeat can be detected — even in cases of rape. The only exception as outlined in the bill is an abortion “that is necessary to save the life of a mother whose life is endangered by a physical (but not psychological or emotional) disorder, illness, or condition.”

Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, sponsor of the Heartbeat Protection Act told LifeSiteNews “it’s a pro-life ‘turf battle.’”

King and Porter believe that National Right to Life (NRLC) and House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., are preventing a vote on the Heartbeat bill.

“Can you believe it?” King said in a Facebook post. “A ‘pro-life’ activist group is actually attempting to block a pro-life bill! This is absolutely insane and they need to be called out on their hypocrisy ASAP.”

NRLC disputes King’s claims. In an interview with LifeSiteNews, NRLC’s deputy press secretary Tatiana Bergum said NRLC’s president Carol Tobias told King she does not oppose the Heartbeat Bill. “We don’t understand why he is singling out National Right to Life for his unfair attacks.”

“The only organization that we can identify that’s not publicly endorsing and supporting the bill is National Right to Life,” said King. “I think National Right to Life needs to decide to lead, follow, or get out of the way.”

King and Porter believe that if NRLC, SBA and Family Research Council supported the Heartbeat bill it would go to the floor for a vote.

“National Right to Life has been arguing that the Supreme Court won’t uphold” the Heartbeat Bill, said King. “I think the argument’s stronger in upholding the Heartbeat Bill than it is in upholding the Pain-Capable Bill.” 

“I don’t wanna disparage [the] Pain-Capable” Bill, King said. King was one of the bill’s co-sponsors. “But that bill was written during the Obama era with the idea that Obama could be convinced to sign it. It wasn’t written with the expectation that we would have a president that would actually sign a pro-life bill … the Heartbeat Bill is written with that” understanding.

“I know if I have to answer to God which one He’ll tell me I need to do,” King said. “He’ll say, ‘save the babies. Don’t worry about people’s feelings; save the babies.’”

“I’m not interested in people’s egos; I’m interested in saving the lives of babies,” he continued. And if the Heartbeat legislation doesn’t go to the floor? “I’ll be obligated to do everything that I can do that is within the rules and within the morals and ethics and standards that each of us should have.”