Exemplary Service Is Foster’s Record Pro Foster Critics Refuse To See Doctor’s True Dedication And Work

The Henry Foster slimed this week in the Senate was not a human being, it was a scarecrow, fabricated for political purposes from the obsessions, distortions and imaginings of the religious right.

The real Henry Foster has done more to relieve some of our toughest social problems than his Senate critics are likely to do in the entirety of their political careers.

The real Henry Foster deserves to be our next Surgeon General.

In contrast to the modern-day Pharisees who throw stones at “abortionists” from the stained-glass comfort of country-club Republicanism, Foster has devoted his career to service among America’s poor.

His critics are obsessed with the fact he performed 39 legal abortions in 22 years, and with the fact he admits guessing incorrectly about that number before he’d had a chance to examine his records and count. The critics also pretend concern about four sterilizations of retarded women - then a medically accepted practice that Foster, ahead of his time, was urging his profession to approach with restraint.

The truth about Henry Foster lies elsewhere. He chose to practice obstetrics in an impoverished corner of Alabama. He delivered thousands of babies. He worked also as a medical-school educator, inspiring new generations of physicians like himself.

He won a presidential award for developing a hands-on program to combat teen pregnancy. He went into the slums, emphasizing abstinence along with contraception, reaching out to young men as well as women.

Foster didn’t have time for pretentious shrieking about abortion. The gritty, real world of medical practice led him correctly to the underlying, practical issues of pregnancy prevention. He and President Clinton are right to label this a top priority for the Surgeon General.

Foster’s other priorities are appropriate as well: tobacco, breast cancer, AIDS, violent crime and drug abuse.

The Surgeon General must be an educator, a leader, a fearless voice who understands the people to whom he speaks. To do these things, the Surgeon General needs credibility. The real story of Foster’s medical career is a story of public service. In contrast to his critics, who are only playing political games, his kind of activism commands respect.

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