II 

Calendar No. 4 

119TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 6 

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 SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 15, 2025 

Mr. LANKFORD (for himself, Mr. BANKS, Mr. THUNE, Mrs. HYDE-SMITH, Mr. 

RISCH, Ms. LUMMIS, Mrs. BRITT, Mr. MCCONNELL, Mr. WICKER, Mrs. 

BLACKBURN, Mr. CRAPO, Mrs. FISCHER, Mr. GRASSLEY, Mr. HOEVEN, 

Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. BUDD, Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina, 

Mr. JOHNSON, Mr. SHEEHY, Mr. TUBERVILLE, Mr. HAGERTY, Mr. CURTIS, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. RICKETTS, Mr. CRAMER, Mr. BARRASSO, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. ROUNDS, Ms. ERNST, Mr. SCOTT

of Florida, Mr. DAINES, Mr. MULLIN, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. CRUZ, Mr. 

SCHMITT, Mr. LEE, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. MORAN, Mr. COTTON, Mr. 

HAWLEY, Mr. MCCORMICK, and Mr. BOOZMAN) introduced the following 

bill; which was read the first time 

JANUARY 16, 2025 

Read the second time and placed on the calendar 

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 the following: 

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: 

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

7 ADMISSION TO A HOSPITAL.—Any health care practi8 tioner present at the time the child is born alive 

9 shall— 

10 ‘‘(A) exercise the same degree of profes11 sional skill, care, and diligence to preserve the 

12 life and health of the child as a reasonably dili13 gent and conscientious health care practitioner 

14 would render to any other child born alive at 

15 the same gestational age; and 

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

17 and diligence required under subparagraph (A), 

18 ensure that the child born alive is immediately 

19 transported and admitted to a hospital. 

20 ‘‘(2) MANDATORY REPORTING OF VIOLA21 TIONS.—A health care practitioner or any employee 

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

23 clinic who has knowledge of a failure to comply with 

24 the requirements of paragraph (1) shall immediately 

25 report the failure to an appropriate State or Federal 

26 law enforcement agency, or to both. 


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1 ‘‘(b) PENALTIES.— 

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

3 (a) shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for not 

4 more than 5 years, or both. 

5 ‘‘(2) INTENTIONAL KILLING OF CHILD BORN

6 ALIVE.—Whoever intentionally performs or attempts 

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

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

9 under section 1111 of this title for intentionally kill10 ing or attempting to kill a human being. 

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

12 born alive described under subsection (a) may not be pros13 ecuted for a violation of this section, an attempt to violate 

14 this section, a conspiracy to violate this section, or an of15 fense under section 3 or 4 of this title based on such a 

16 violation. 

17 ‘‘(d) CIVIL REMEDIES.— 

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

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

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

21 upon whom the abortion was performed or at22 tempted may, in a civil action against any person 

23 who committed the violation, obtain appropriate re24 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 ‘‘(3) BORN ALIVE.—The term ‘born alive’ has 

16 the meaning given that term in section 8 of title 1, 

17 United States Code (commonly known as the ‘Born18 Alive Infants Protection Act’).’’. 

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

20 (1) The table of sections for chapter 74 of title 

21 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

22 the end the following: 

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

23 (2) The chapter heading for chapter 74 of title 

24 18, United States Code, is amended by striking 


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1 ‘‘PARTIAL-BIRTH ABORTIONS’’ and insert2 ing ‘‘ABORTIONS’’. 

3 (3) The table of chapters for part I of title 18, 

4 United States Code, is amended by striking the item 

5 relating to chapter 74 and inserting the following: 

‘‘74. Abortion ....................................................................................... 1531’’. 

6 SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

7 This Act shall take effect one day after the date of 

8 enactment. 


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Calendar No. 4 

119TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 6 

A BILL 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit 

who survives an abortion or attempted abortion. the proper degree of care in the case of a child a health care practitioner from failing to exercise 

JANUARY 16, 2025 

Read the second time and placed on the calendar 


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