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Induced abortion is the active termination of a pregnancy before fetal viability.
The decision to perform an induced abortion is a medical one, made confidentially between the patient and her physician within the confines of existing Canadian law. The decision is made after conscientious examination of all other options. Induced abortion requires medical and surgical expertise and is a medical act. It should be performed only in a facility that meets approved medical standards, not necessarily a hospital. In this context viability is the ability of the fetus to survive independently of the maternal environment.