This bill inserts a new provision into title 18 that requires health care practitioners present at the birth after an abortion or attempted abortion to exercise the same degree of professional care to preserve the life and health of a child born alive as would be given to any other newborn at the same gestational age, and to ensure immediate admission to a hospital. It also creates reporting obligations for violations, establishes criminal penalties, and authorizes civil remedies for the mother.
In addition to defining key terms, the bill makes conforming amendments to the U.S. Code and provides an effective date one day after enactment.
At a Glance
What It Does
The act adds a new section (1532) to Chapter 74, requiring care for born-alive infants and mandating reporting of violations. It also outlines penalties, civil remedies, and definitions, and it secures conforming amendments to Title 18.
Who It Affects
Health care practitioners, hospitals, abortion clinics, and their staff; state and federal law enforcement; and mothers of survivors who may sue for remedies.
Why It Matters
It establishes a federal standard of care for live-born infants after abortion, creates enforcement channels, and provides legal remedies to survivors and their families while clarifying definitions in the underlying statute.
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What This Bill Actually Does
The bill adds a dedicated provision to Title 18 that formalizes the obligation of health care practitioners to treat a child born alive after an abortion with the same care they would give to any other live birth. Practitioners must promptly admit the child to a hospital after care is provided.
It also requires immediate reporting of any failure to meet these obligations to state or federal authorities. Violations carry criminal penalties, including potential prison time, and civil remedies are available to the mother of the survivor, including monetary damages, treble the cost of the abortion, punitive damages, and attorney’s fees for prevailing parties.
The bill defines key terms (abortion, attempt, born-alive) and makes conforming amendments to the U.S. Code, with an effective date one day after enactment. The mother cannot be prosecuted under this section, and there are procedures for frivolous civil actions.
The changes affect both providers and enforcement bodies, and they align statutory language with the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act framework.
The Five Things You Need to Know
The bill creates Section 1532, requiring care for born-alive abortion survivors and immediate hospital admission.
Mandatory reporting of violations to state or federal authorities is established.
Penalties include fines and up to five years in prison for violations; intentional killing of a born-alive child is punished under existing homicide provisions.
Civil remedies allow damages to the survivor's mother, treble abortion costs, punitive damages, and attorney’s fees.
Conforming amendments update section headings and the overall structure of Chapter 74; the act takes effect one day after enactment.
Section-by-Section Breakdown
Every bill we cover gets an analysis of its key sections.
Care requirements for born-alive survivors
This subsection requires health care practitioners present at the birth of a child born alive to provide the same degree of professional skill, care, and diligence as would be given to any other live birth at the same gestational age, and to ensure immediate admission to a hospital after care is provided.
Penalties for non-compliance
Violations of the care requirements carry fines, imprisonment for up to five years, or both. If an act or omission intentionally kills a child born alive, the offender faces punishment under the existing statute for intentionally killing a human being.
Bar to prosecution of the mother
The mother of a child born alive covered by this section cannot be prosecuted for a violation of this section, an attempt, conspiracy, or related offenses based on such a violation.
Civil remedies for survivors
A survivor’s mother may sue for relief, including damages for injuries (physical and psychological), statutory damages equal to three times the abortion cost, and punitive damages. The court may award reasonable attorney’s fees to prevailing plaintiffs.
Definitions
Provides definitions for abortion, attempt, and born alive, adopting the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act’s meaning for the latter. These definitions tie the new provisions to existing federal terms.
Conforming amendments and effective date
The bill makes conforming edits to the table of sections and the chapter heading (changing Partial-Birth Abortion to Abortions) and sets the effective date as one day after enactment.
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Explore Healthcare in Codify Search →Who Benefits and Who Bears the Cost
Every bill creates winners and losers. Here's who stands to gain and who bears the cost.
Who Benefits
- Infants born alive gain guaranteed immediate life-sustaining care and hospital admission.
- Parents of survivors gain a private civil remedy and a process to seek relief for injuries and costs.
- Hospitals and clinics receive clear, codified expectations and reporting duties that create a compliant operating framework.
- Law enforcement agencies gain defined obligations to receive and act on mandatory reports.
Who Bears the Cost
- Hospitals and health care providers bear compliance costs, including staff training and reporting infrastructure.
- State and federal law enforcement agencies incur costs associated with investigating and processing reports of violations.
- Defendants in civil actions may face damages, treble costs for abortion, punitive damages, and potential attorney’s fees, depending on outcomes and court rulings.
Key Issues
The Core Tension
The central dilemma is whether creating strict, federally backed care standards and aggressive penalties will meaningfully protect born-alive infants without imposing undue risk or chilling effects on medical practice and patient access to care.
The bill introduces a layered set of obligations and remedies that interact with criminal law and civil procedure. While it clearly codifies a baseline standard of care for born-alive survivors, the enforcement architecture—mandatory reporting, criminal penalties, and civil damages—creates new incentives and potential burdens for providers.
Implementation will require hospitals to adjust intake and neonatal stabilization protocols and to establish reporting channels compatible with federal and state systems. The civil-damages framework—particularly trebled abortion costs and punitive damages—could drive substantial liability exposure in some cases, beyond what typical malpractice risk models anticipate.
Questions about how “abortion” costs are measured, and how the Act interacts with existing abortion laws and consent regimes, remain areas for practical clarification.
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