II 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4712 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 20, 2018 

Received 

AN ACT 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit a health 

care practitioner from failing to exercise the proper degree of care in the case of a child who survives an 

abortion or attempted abortion. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Born-Alive Abortion 

3 Survivors Protection Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds as follows: 

6 (1) If an abortion results in the live birth of an 

7 infant, the infant is a legal person for all purposes 

8 under the laws of the United States, and entitled to 

9 all the protections of such laws. 

10 (2) Any infant born alive after an abortion or 

11 within a hospital, clinic, or other facility has the 

12 same claim to the protection of the law that would 

13 arise for any newborn, or for any person who comes 

14 to a hospital, clinic, or other facility for screening 

15 and treatment or otherwise becomes a patient within 

16 its care. 

17 SEC. 3. BORN-ALIVE INFANTS PROTECTION. 

18 (a) REQUIREMENTS PERTAINING TO BORN-ALIVE

19 ABORTION SURVIVORS.—Chapter 74 of title 18, United 

20 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1531 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘§ 1532. Requirements pertaining to born-alive abor23 tion survivors 

24 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENTS FOR HEALTH CARE PRACTI25 TIONERS.—In the case of an abortion or attempted abor26 tion that results in a child born alive (as defined in section 


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1 8 of title 1, United States Code (commonly known as the 

2 ‘Born-Alive Infants Protection Act’)): 

3 ‘‘(1) DEGREE OF CARE REQUIRED; IMMEDIATE

4 ADMISSION TO A HOSPITAL.—Any health care practi5 tioner present at the time the child is born alive 

6 shall— 

7 ‘‘(A) exercise the same degree of profes8 sional skill, care, and diligence to preserve the 

9 life and health of the child as a reasonably dili10 gent and conscientious health care practitioner 

11 would render to any other child born alive at 

12 the same gestational age; and 

13 ‘‘(B) following the exercise of skill, care, 

14 and diligence required under subparagraph (A), 

15 ensure that the child born alive is immediately 

16 transported and admitted to a hospital. 

17 ‘‘(2) MANDATORY REPORTING OF VIOLA18 TIONS.—A health care practitioner or any employee 

19 of a hospital, a physician’s office, or an abortion 

20 clinic who has knowledge of a failure to comply with 

21 the requirements of paragraph (1) shall immediately 

22 report the failure to an appropriate State or Federal 

23 law enforcement agency, or to both. 

24 ‘‘(b) PENALTIES.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Whoever violates subsection 

2 (a) shall be fined under this title or imprisoned for 

3 not more than 5 years, or both. 

4 ‘‘(2) INTENTIONAL KILLING OF CHILD BORN

5 ALIVE.—Whoever intentionally performs or attempts 

6 to perform an overt act that kills a child born alive 

7 described under subsection (a), shall be punished as 

8 under section 1111 of this title for intentionally kill9 ing or attempting to kill a human being. 

10 ‘‘(c) BAR TO PROSECUTION.—The mother of a child 

11 born alive described under subsection (a) may not be pros12 ecuted under this section, for conspiracy to violate this 

13 section, or for an offense under section 3 or 4 of this title 

14 based on such a violation. 

15 ‘‘(d) CIVIL REMEDIES.— 

16 ‘‘(1) CIVIL ACTION BY A WOMAN ON WHOM AN

17 ABORTION IS PERFORMED.—If a child is born alive 

18 and there is a violation of subsection (a), the woman 

19 upon whom the abortion was performed or at20 tempted may, in a civil action against any person 

21 who committed the violation, obtain appropriate re22 lief. 

23 ‘‘(2) APPROPRIATE RELIEF.—Appropriate relief 

24 in a civil action under this subsection includes— 


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1 ‘‘(A) objectively verifiable money damage 

2 for all injuries, psychological and physical, occa3 sioned by the violation of subsection (a); 

4 ‘‘(B) statutory damages equal to 3 times 

5 the cost of the abortion or attempted abortion; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(C) punitive damages. 

8 ‘‘(3) ATTORNEY’S FEE FOR PLAINTIFF.—The 

9 court shall award a reasonable attorney’s fee to a 

10 prevailing plaintiff in a civil action under this sub11 section. 

12 ‘‘(4) ATTORNEY’S FEE FOR DEFENDANT.—If a 

13 defendant in a civil action under this subsection pre14 vails and the court finds that the plaintiff’s suit was 

15 frivolous, the court shall award a reasonable attor16 ney’s fee in favor of the defendant against the plain17 tiff. 

18 ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section the following 

19 definitions apply: 

20 ‘‘(1) ABORTION.—The term ‘abortion’ means 

21 the use or prescription of any instrument, medicine, 

22 drug, or any other substance or device— 

23 ‘‘(A) to intentionally kill the unborn child 

24 of a woman known to be pregnant; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) to intentionally terminate the preg2 nancy of a woman known to be pregnant, with 

3 an intention other than— 

4 ‘‘(i) after viability, to produce a live 

5 birth and preserve the life and health of 

6 the child born alive; or 

7 ‘‘(ii) to remove a dead unborn child. 

8 ‘‘(2) ATTEMPT.—The term ‘attempt’, with re9 spect to an abortion, means conduct that, under the 

10 circumstances as the actor believes them to be, con11 stitutes a substantial step in a course of conduct 

12 planned to culminate in performing an abortion.’’. 

13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

14 for chapter 74 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 

15 by inserting after the item pertaining to section 1531 the 

16 following: 

‘‘1532. Requirements pertaining to born-alive abortion survivors.’’. 

17 (c) CHAPTER HEADING AMENDMENTS.— 

18 (1) CHAPTER HEADING IN CHAPTER.—The 

19 chapter heading for chapter 74 of title 18, United 

20 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Partial21 Birth Abortions’’ and inserting ‘‘Abortions’’. 

22 (2) TABLE OF CHAPTERS FOR PART I.—The 

23 item relating to chapter 74 in the table of chapters 

24 at the beginning of part I of title 18, United States 


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1 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Partial-Birth Abor2 tions’’ and inserting ‘‘Abortions’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives January 19, 

2018. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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