The bill amends the Family and Medical Leave Act to add “spontaneous loss of an unborn child” as a qualifying reason for FMLA leave and inserts parallel language into Title 5 for federal civil service employees. It permits intermittent or reduced-schedule leave when medically necessary, allows substitution of paid leave, and authorizes employers to require medical certification tailored to pregnancy loss.
Separately, the bill creates a new, refundable tax credit (new Internal Revenue Code §36C) for individuals who suffer a stillbirth in a taxable year. The credit is tied to the dollar amount in section 24(a) (the child tax credit amount), requires a state-issued certificate of birth resulting in stillbirth, and requires the taxpayer include a Social Security number on the return.
The measure affects covered private employers, federal agencies, HR and payroll compliance, health-care providers who issue certifications, and Treasury/IRS systems administering the new refundable credit.
At a Glance
What It Does
The bill inserts a new FMLA qualifying event—“spontaneous loss of an unborn child”—and amends entitlement, scheduling, notice, paid-leave substitution, and certification rules to cover that event. It mirrors those changes for federal civil service leave under Title 5. It also adds IRC §36C to allow a refundable federal tax credit for taxpayers who experienced a stillbirth, subject to state documentation and SSN requirements.
Who It Affects
Covered private-sector employees eligible for FMLA (and their spouses), federal civil service employees, employers subject to FMLA and federal agencies, HR/payroll teams, health-care providers who produce medical certification or state stillbirth certificates, and IRS systems administering a new refundable credit.
Why It Matters
It fills a statutory gap by explicitly protecting leave for pregnancy loss while creating a new direct financial benefit for families who experience stillbirth. That combination creates administrative and privacy implications for employers, providers, and Treasury because eligibility rests on medical certification and state-issued documentation plus SSN verification.
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What This Bill Actually Does
The bill adds a defined term—“spontaneous loss of an unborn child”—to the FMLA definition section and creates a parallel definition in Title 5 for federal employees. By doing so the statute recognizes an unplanned, nonintentional fetal loss as a covered reason for leave.
That recognition is not merely symbolic: the bill adds a new clause to the list of reasons that trigger entitlement to FMLA leave, so eligible employees (and spouses) may take leave when they experience such a loss.
On mechanics, the bill lets employees take this leave intermittently or on a reduced schedule when medically necessary, and it makes substitution of accrued paid leave available for this new category just as it is for existing FMLA reasons. Employers may require that requests for this leave be supported by medical certification; the bill specifies that certification must include the same sorts of information already required for other FMLA medical certifications (date(s), medical facts supporting the need for leave, expected duration, and whether the leave is for bodily side effects related to the loss).
The statute requires employees to give notice that is “reasonable and practicable,” leaving timing specifics to existing FMLA rules and normal employer–employee coordination.The bill duplicates these changes for federal civil service rules in Title 5 so that federal employees receive the same entitlement, scheduling, substitution, notice, and certification treatment as private-sector employees covered by FMLA. The identical drafting across both titles aims to standardize treatment between private and federal sectors.Separately, the bill inserts a new, refundable tax credit into the Internal Revenue Code (new §36C).
An “eligible individual” is someone who suffered a stillbirth during the taxable year of a child who would have been a qualifying child under section 152, and who provides a state-issued certificate of birth resulting in stillbirth. The amount of the credit equals the dollar amount in effect under section 24(a) (the child tax credit amount) for the taxable year.
The statute requires the taxpayer’s Social Security number on the return (or one spouse’s SSN on a joint return) and limits the credit to years after the enactment. Together, the leave entitlement and refundable credit aim to provide both protected time off and a direct cash benefit to families that experience stillbirth.
The Five Things You Need to Know
The bill adds “spontaneous loss of an unborn child” to the FMLA definition list and creates a new entitlement under 29 U.S.C. §2612(a)(1)(G) allowing eligible employees to use FMLA leave for that event.
Leave for spontaneous loss may be taken intermittently or on a reduced schedule when medically necessary and allows substitution of accrued paid leave under the same rules that govern other FMLA reasons.
Employers (and federal agencies) may require medical certification specific to pregnancy loss; the bill directs certification to include the same items described in existing FMLA medical-certification rules (timing, medical facts, duration, and bodily side-effect information).
The bill applies the same definition, entitlement, scheduling, notice, and certification changes to federal civil service leave (amending 5 U.S.C. §§6381–6383), creating parity between covered private employees and federal employees.
It creates a refundable tax credit (new IRC §36C) for taxpayers who suffer a stillbirth equal to the section 24(a) child tax credit amount, conditioned on a state-issued stillbirth certificate and a Social Security number on the return; effective for taxable years beginning after enactment.
Section-by-Section Breakdown
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Short title
Designates the act as the “Helping with Equal Access to Leave and Investing in Needs for Grieving Mothers and Fathers Act” or the “HEALING Mothers and Fathers Act.” This is purely titular but signals the bill’s dual approach — leave protections plus tax relief — which matters for how agencies and stakeholders frame implementation.
New FMLA definition for spontaneous loss
Amends 29 U.S.C. §2611 by inserting paragraph (13) defining “spontaneous loss of an unborn child” as an unplanned, nonpurposeful loss. That explicit statutory definition anchors subsequent entitlement language and narrows disputes about whether pregnancy loss fits existing FMLA categories; courts and agencies will use this text to resolve contested cases about coverage.
Entitlement, scheduling, notice, paid-leave substitution, and certification under FMLA
Adds a new entitlement clause at 29 U.S.C. §2612(a)(1)(G). Inserts a scheduling provision allowing intermittent or reduced-schedule leave when medically necessary and adds the new reason to the list of conditions for which accrued paid leave may be substituted. Notice is limited to what is “reasonable and practicable,” and employers may require certification specifically tailored to pregnancy loss; the bill cross-references existing certification content requirements (the items in subsection (b) paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (5)), so HR teams will rely on the procedural framework already in place for medical certification but must be prepared to handle documentation that addresses pregnancy loss and related bodily side effects.
Parallel amendments for federal civil service (Title 5)
Mirrors the FMLA amendments in 5 U.S.C. §§6381–6383: adds the same definition, entitlement (6382(a)(1)(F)), scheduling, substitution, notice, and certification provisions to federal civil service leave law. This preserves parity between private employees covered by FMLA and federal employees, but it also imposes an administrative update requirement on federal agencies, including changes to personnel regulations and employee-leave systems.
New refundable stillbirth tax credit (IRC §36C) and conforming changes
Inserts new IRC §36C allowing a refundable credit equal to the dollar amount in section 24(a) for an “eligible individual” who suffered a stillbirth in the taxable year. Eligibility requires that the stillbirth would have produced a qualifying child under section 152 and that the taxpayer obtains a state-issued certificate of birth resulting in stillbirth. The provision includes an identification requirement—tax returns must include a Social Security number (or one spouse’s SSN on a joint return)—and makes limited conforming edits to tax-administration provisions to allow refunds for this credit.
Effective date
Makes the IRC amendments effective for taxable years beginning after the date of enactment, which creates an implementation window for Treasury and IRS systems and informs taxpayers that credits will not apply retroactively to prior tax years.
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Every bill creates winners and losers. Here's who stands to gain and who bears the cost.
Who Benefits
- Employees who experience pregnancy loss (pregnant individuals and their spouses): they gain explicit FMLA protection to take job‑protected leave for spontaneous loss, including the ability to take intermittent leave when medically necessary.
- Federal civil service employees: Title 5 employees receive the same leave entitlement and procedural protections, removing disparity between federal workers and private-sector FMLA‑eligible employees.
- Families that suffer stillbirths: eligible taxpayers can claim a refundable federal credit equal to the child tax credit amount, delivering direct cash support subject to documentation and SSN rules.
- HR, benefits, and payroll professionals at covered employers: they receive statutory clarity about what counts as an FMLA-qualifying event and how to treat substitution of paid leave and certification for pregnancy loss, which reduces legal uncertainty in handling leave requests.
Who Bears the Cost
- Covered private employers (those subject to FMLA): they face additional leave usage, administration of intermittent and reduced‑schedule leave, tracking paid-leave substitution, and potentially increased coverage costs or temporary staffing needs.
- Federal agencies and human‑resources offices: agencies must update leave policies, certify systems, and train managers on the new Title 5 language, producing administrative and budgetary burdens.
- Healthcare providers and vital‑records offices: clinicians will face increased demand for medical certifications specific to pregnancy loss and states may experience higher requests for stillbirth certificates, adding paperwork and timing constraints.
- IRS and Treasury: implementing a new refundable credit plus SSN verification and state‑certificate validation requires system changes, outreach, and potentially increased outlays for refunds, all of which have administrative cost implications.
Key Issues
The Core Tension
The central dilemma is balancing a legislative desire to recognize and validate pregnancy loss—by creating job‑protected leave and a refundable credit—with the practical need for documentary proof and administrative limits; requiring medical or state documentation protects against improper claims but risks excluding the most vulnerable families and intruding on privacy during a sensitive time.
The bill creates workable statutory cover for pregnancy loss but leaves several operational questions unanswered. It permits certification “in a timely manner” but does not define concrete timelines for submission or specify acceptable forms of state stillbirth documentation when State practices vary; that gives employers, courts, and agencies latitude but also invites disputes over what counts as adequate proof when paperwork is delayed or unavailable.
The intermittent‑leave allowance is limited to situations that are “medically necessary,” a fact-intensive standard that will depend on provider statements and may generate contested claims and litigation over scope and frequency of intermittent absences.
The refundable tax credit is a straightforward cash benefit in theory, but the SSN and state‑certificate requirements create exclusion risks. Mixed‑status couples, noncitizen parents without an SSN, or families in states with different vital‑records practices could be effectively barred from the credit.
Additionally, tying the credit amount to section 24(a) means the dollar value may change with other tax-law adjustments, complicating budgeting and taxpayer expectations. Finally, the bill does not guarantee paid leave—only job protection via FMLA and the option to substitute accrued paid leave—so many workers will still face lost wages despite the new protections and one-time credit.
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