Iceland is close to eliminating Down syndrome births due to widespread prenatal screening tests and nearly 100% of women choosing an abortion in the case of a positive test for Down syndrome:
With the rise of prenatal screening tests across Europe and the United States, the number of babies born with Down syndrome has significantly decreased, but few countries have come as close to eradicating Down syndrome births as Iceland.
Since prenatal screening tests were introduced in Iceland in the early 2000s, the vast majority of women -- close to 100 percent -- who received a positive test for Down syndrome terminated their pregnancy.
While the tests are optional, the government states that all expectant mothers must be informed about availability of screening tests, which reveal the likelihood of a child being born with Down syndrome. Around 80 to 85 percent of pregnant women choose to take the prenatal screening test, according to Landspitali University Hospital in Reykjavik.
[...] Other countries aren't lagging too far behind in Down syndrome termination rates. According to the most recent data available, the United States has an estimated termination rate for Down syndrome [open, DOI: 10.1002/pd.2910] [DX] of 67 percent (1995-2011); in France it's 77 percent (2015); and Denmark, 98 percent (2015). The law in Iceland permits abortion after 16 weeks if the fetus has a deformity -- and Down syndrome is included in this category.
The Prenatal Diagnosis link in the summary was replaced with a working version.
National Review has a counterpoint opinion piece about the CBSN article. Snopes has a page debunking inaccurate headlines about the article.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday August 17 2017, @08:51PM
That happened years ago:
https://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/11/should-down-syndrome-be-cured/ [nytimes.com]
You can probably find something a lot more militant than that with a little searching.
Perhaps more puzzling are deaf advocates who don't want a cure, since deafness doesn't affect personality, thinking, and functioning to the same extent that massive neurological disorders like Down syndrome and autism can:
Some Deaf Advocates Denounce Ear Implants That Reproduce Sound : Medicine: They contend that being unable to hear is no handicap and oppose 'invasive surgery.' Doctors say they're mystified by that view. [latimes.com] (1993!)
Why not all deaf people want to be cured [telegraph.co.uk]
The divided culture of the Deaf [abc.net.au]
Cochlear War [cochlearwar.com]
You have some in the thread claiming that Down syndrome produces happier people and more productive workers (similar claims with autism, etc.). Is being deaf desirable aside from having the companionship of people in the deaf community and various government and social benefits? What about blindness? Planning on pulling a Daredevil (see The Defenders tomorrow)?
Even with America's widespread Christian and evangelical scourge, we can see that 67% choose to abort when Down syndrome is detected (questions of false positives aside). 2/3 choose not to put up with bullshit genetic errors, despite the abortion hysteria. And the "professionally umbraged" can't do anything about it.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]