Crosstalk: May 7, 2015

Dr. Den Trumbull is president of the American College of Pediatricians. He is also a founding member and fellow of the organization. Dr. Trumbull is board certified in pediatrics with special interest in behavioral pediatrics. He has written and spoken nationally on the topic of parenting. He is also a member of the Christian Medical & Dental Society. Last month on the 28th, Supreme Court justices began hearing oral arguments on the issue of marriage. For example, can states say that marriage is between one man and one woman? Does a state have to recognize a same-sex marriage from another state? A decision in this matter is expected by the end of June. When questioned as to why pediatricians are weighing in on marriage, Dr. Trumbull's response was that family is the best medicine. It's crucial to the optimal development of a child. His organization aims to present the science behind the benefits of the family. When his organization looked at the American Academy of Pediatric's decision to advocate and support homosexual adoption, they didn't find convincing research that defended the position that children in same-sex families fare equally as well as those raised by heterosexual, biological parents. So the reason that the American College of Pediatricians filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court case was to encourage the court to consider the well-being of children by looking more closely at the research and discover what they did; that the research is limited and indicates that children raised by same-sex couples do fare worse than those raised by heterosexual, biological parents.