I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4712 

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. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 21, 2017 

Mrs. BLACKBURN (for herself, Mr. ABRAHAM, Mr. ADERHOLT, Mr. 

ARRINGTON, Mr. BABIN, Mr. BACON, Mr. BANKS of Indiana, Mr. 

BARLETTA, Mr. BOST, Mr. BRADY of Texas, Mr. CHABOT, Mr. COLLINS

of New York, Mr. COLLINS of Georgia, Mr. CONAWAY, Mr. CRAMER, Mr. 

DAVIDSON, Mr. DUNCAN of South Carolina, Mr. FLORES, Ms. FOXX, Mr. 

GIBBS, Mr. GOODLATTE, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. HARRIS, Mr. JODY B. HICE

of Georgia, Mr. HUDSON, Mr. HUIZENGA, Mr. JOHNSON of Ohio, Mr. 

JONES, Mr. JORDAN, Mr. JOYCE of Ohio, Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania, 

Mr. LAMBORN, Mr. LUETKEMEYER, Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. MITCHELL, Mr. 

MULLIN, Mrs. NOEM, Mr. NORMAN, Mr. OLSON, Mr. PALAZZO, Mr. 

PITTENGER, Mr. ROE of Tennessee, Mr. ROKITA, Mr. ROSKAM, Mr. 

ROTHFUS, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. STEWART, Mrs. WAGNER, Mr. 

WALKER, Mrs. WALORSKI, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mr. WEBSTER of Florida, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. WITTMAN, Mr. YODER, Mr. 

MOOLENAAR, and Mr. EMMER) introduced the following bill; which was 

referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

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. 


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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

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

5 Survivors Protection Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds as follows: 

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

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

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

11 all the protections of such laws. 

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

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

14 same claim to the protection of the law that would 

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

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

17 and treatment or otherwise becomes a patient within 

18 its care. 

19 SEC. 3. BORN-ALIVE INFANTS PROTECTION. 

20 (a) REQUIREMENTS PERTAINING TO BORN-ALIVE

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

22 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1531 

23 the following: 


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1 ‘‘§ 1532. Requirements pertaining to born-alive abor2 tion survivors 

3 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENTS FOR HEALTH CARE PRACTI4 TIONERS.—In the case of an abortion or attempted abor5 tion that results in a child born alive (as defined in section 

6 8 of title 1, United States Code (commonly known as the 

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

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

9 ADMISSION TO A HOSPITAL.—Any health care practi10 tioner present at the time the child is born alive 

11 shall— 

12 ‘‘(A) exercise the same degree of profes13 sional skill, care, and diligence to preserve the 

14 life and health of the child as a reasonably dili15 gent and conscientious health care practitioner 

16 would render to any other child born alive at 

17 the same gestational age; and 

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

19 and diligence required under subparagraph (A), 

20 ensure that the child born alive is immediately 

21 transported and admitted to a hospital. 

22 ‘‘(2) MANDATORY REPORTING OF VIOLA23 TIONS.—A health care practitioner or any employee 

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

25 clinic who has knowledge of a failure to comply with 

26 the requirements of paragraph (1) shall immediately 


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1 report the failure to an appropriate State or Federal 

2 law enforcement agency, or to both. 

3 ‘‘(b) PENALTIES.— 

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

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

6 not more than 5 years, or both. 

7 ‘‘(2) INTENTIONAL KILLING OF CHILD BORN

8 ALIVE.—Whoever intentionally performs or attempts 

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

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

11 under section 1111 of this title for intentionally kill12 ing or attempting to kill a human being. 

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

14 born alive described under subsection (a) may not be pros15 ecuted under this section, for conspiracy to violate this 

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

17 based on such a violation. 

18 ‘‘(d) CIVIL REMEDIES.— 

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

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

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

22 upon whom the abortion was performed or at23 tempted may, in a civil action against any person 

24 who committed the violation, obtain appropriate re25 lief. 


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

2 in a civil action under this subsection includes— 

3 ‘‘(A) objectively verifiable money damage 

4 for all injuries, psychological and physical, occa5 sioned by the violation of subsection (a); 

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

7 the cost of the abortion or attempted abortion; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(C) punitive damages. 

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

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

12 prevailing plaintiff in a civil action under this sub13 section. 

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

15 defendant in a civil action under this subsection pre16 vails and the court finds that the plaintiff’s suit was 

17 frivolous, the court shall award a reasonable attor18 ney’s fee in favor of the defendant against the plain19 tiff. 

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

21 definitions apply: 

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

23 the use or prescription of any instrument, medicine, 

24 drug, or any other substance or device— 


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

2 of a woman known to be pregnant; or 

3 ‘‘(B) to intentionally terminate the preg4 nancy of a woman known to be pregnant, with 

5 an intention other than— 

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

7 birth and preserve the life and health of 

8 the child born alive; or 

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

10 ‘‘(2) ATTEMPT.—The term ‘attempt’, with re11 spect to an abortion, means conduct that, under the 

12 circumstances as the actor believes them to be, con13 stitutes a substantial step in a course of conduct 

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

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

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

17 by inserting after the item pertaining to section 1531 the 

18 following: 

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

19 (c) CHAPTER HEADING AMENDMENTS.— 

20 (1) CHAPTER HEADING IN CHAPTER.—The 

21 chapter heading for chapter 74 of title 18, United 

22 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Partial23 Birth Abortions’’ and inserting ‘‘Abortions’’. 

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

25 item relating to chapter 74 in the table of chapters 


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

2 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Partial-Birth Abor3 tions’’ and inserting ‘‘Abortions’’. 

Æ 


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