The bill is designed to provide a safe, confidential haven for unwanted and abandoned newborns in the hopes of preventing injury and death. Advocates for the bill agree that adoption is the best choice, however they point out that individuals in this situation do not always plan and may panic and need another alternative. The Safe Harbor Bill is not designed as an alternative to adoption but an emergency outlet a way to save babies who might otherwise die. Supporters believe that if one baby is saved through the offering of a secret, safe-place, then the program make sense. In addition, if a new mother feels they cannot keep their baby and has made the decision to abandon the baby, what better place than a hospital emergency department.
Experts also say that many abandoned babies are never discovered.
Ohio and most other states don't keep records. Other states have passed this type of legislation and programs are operating in several counties in Alabama. Officials in these areas do not believe this program has led to an increase in abandoned babies or a decrease in the number of women putting babies up for adoption. The Children's Medical Center continues to work to get Ohio to join the seventeen other states that have enacted state-wide helmet laws for children. Until that happens, we continue to work with cities in our area to pass local ordinances that require children to wear helmets.