I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 532 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit discrimination by abortion 
against an unborn child on the basis of Down syndrome. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 28, 2021 
Mr. ESTES (for himself, Mr. STAUBER, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mr. LAMBORN, 
Mr. BUDD, Mr. NORMAN, Mr. BABIN, Mr. MOONEY, Mr. ADERHOLT, Mr. 
ALLEN, Mr. BIGGS, Mr. HICE of Georgia, Mr. JORDAN, Mr. STEUBE, Mr. 
KELLY of Pennsylvania, Ms. HERRERA BEUTLER, Mr. GROTHMAN, Mr. 
LATTA, Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas, Mrs. BOEBERT, Mr. JOHNSON of Lou-
isiana, Mr. JACKSON, Mr. BANKS, Mr. WENSTRUP, Mrs. GREENE of 
Georgia, Mr. MANN, Mrs. FISCHBACH, Ms. HERRELL, Mr. SMITH of New 
Jersey, and Mrs. MILLER of Illinois) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit discrimi-
nation by abortion against an unborn child on the basis 
of Down syndrome. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting Individuals 
with Down Syndrome Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. DISCRIMINATION BY ABORTION AGAINST AN UN-
BORN CHILD ON THE BASIS OF DOWN SYN-
DROME PROHIBITED. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 13 of title 18, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘§ 250. Discrimination by abortion against an unborn 
child on the basis of Down syndrome pro-
hibited 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) ABORTION.—The term ‘abortion’ means 
the act of using or prescribing any instrument, med-
icine, drug, or any other substance, device, or means 
with the intent to— 
‘‘(A) kill the unborn child of a woman 
known to be pregnant; or 
‘‘(B) terminate the pregnancy of a woman 
known to be pregnant, with an intention other 
than— 
‘‘(i) to produce a live birth and pre-
serve the life and health of the child born 
alive; 
‘‘(ii) to save the life of the pregnant 
woman; or 
‘‘(iii) to remove a dead unborn child. 
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the prohibitions on abortion under this sec-
tion; 
‘‘(2) use force or the threat of force to inten-
tionally injure or intimidate any person for the pur-
pose of coercing an abortion described in paragraph 
(1)(A); 
‘‘(3) solicit or accept funds for the performance 
of an abortion described in paragraph (1)(A); or 
‘‘(4) knowingly transport a woman into the 
United States or across a State line for the purpose 
of obtaining an abortion described in paragraph 
(1)(A). 
‘‘(c) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—Any person that violates, 
or attempts to violate, subsection (b) shall be fined under 
this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. 
‘‘(d) CIVIL REMEDIES.— 
‘‘(1) CIVIL ACTION BY WOMAN ON WHOM ABOR-
TION
IS
PERFORMED.—A woman upon whom an 
abortion has been performed or attempted in viola-
tion of subsection (b)(2) may bring a civil action in 
an appropriate court against any person who en-
gaged in a violation of subsection (b)(2) to obtain 
appropriate relief. 
‘‘(2) CIVIL ACTION BY RELATIVES.— 
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‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 
subparagraph (B), the father of an unborn 
child who is the subject of an abortion per-
formed or attempted in violation of subsection 
(b), or a maternal grandparent of the unborn 
child 
if 
the 
pregnant 
woman 
is 
an 
unemancipated minor, may bring a civil action 
in an appropriate court against any person who 
engaged in the violation to obtain appropriate 
relief. 
‘‘(B) 
EXCEPTIONS.—Subparagraph 
(A) 
shall not apply if— 
‘‘(i) the pregnancy or abortion re-
sulted from the criminal conduct of the 
plaintiff described in subparagraph (A); or 
‘‘(ii) the plaintiff described in sub-
paragraph (A) consented to the abortion. 
‘‘(3) APPROPRIATE RELIEF.—Appropriate relief 
in a civil action under this subsection includes— 
‘‘(A) objectively verifiable money damages 
for all injuries, psychological and physical, in-
cluding loss of companionship and support, oc-
casioned by the violation of this section; and 
‘‘(B) punitive damages. 
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‘‘(4) INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—A qualified plaintiff 
may bring a civil action in an appropriate court to 
obtain injunctive relief to prevent an abortion pro-
vider from performing or attempting further abor-
tions in violation of this section. 
‘‘(5) ATTORNEY’S FEES FOR PLAINTIFF.—The 
court shall award a reasonable attorney’s fee as part 
of the costs to a prevailing plaintiff in a civil action 
under this subsection. 
‘‘(e) BAR TO PROSECUTION.—A woman upon whom 
an abortion is performed may not be prosecuted or held 
civilly liable for any violation of this section or for a con-
spiracy to violate this section. 
‘‘(f) LOSS OF FEDERAL FUNDING.—A violation of 
subsection (b) shall be deemed discrimination for the pur-
poses of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 
U.S.C. 794). 
‘‘(g) REPORTING REQUIREMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A physician, physician’s as-
sistant, nurse, counselor, or other medical or mental 
health professional shall report known or suspected 
violations of any of this section to appropriate law 
enforcement authorities. 
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‘‘(2) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—Any person who vio-
lates paragraph (1) shall be fined under this title, 
imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both. 
‘‘(h) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION.—It shall be the 
duty of the district courts of the United States, the courts 
of appeals of the United States, and the Supreme Court 
of the United States to advance on the docket and to expe-
dite to the greatest possible extent the disposition of any 
matter brought under this section. 
‘‘(i) PROTECTION
OF PRIVACY
IN COURT PRO-
CEEDINGS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except to the extent the 
Constitution of the United States or other similarly 
compelling reason requires, in every civil or criminal 
action under this section, the court shall make such 
orders as are necessary to protect the anonymity of 
any woman upon whom an abortion has been per-
formed or attempted if she does not give her written 
consent to such disclosure. Such orders may be 
made upon motion, but shall be made sua sponte if 
not otherwise sought by a party. 
‘‘(2) ORDERS
TO
PARTIES, WITNESSES, AND 
COUNSEL.—The court shall issue appropriate orders 
to the parties, witnesses, and counsel and shall di-
rect the sealing of the record and exclusion of indi-
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viduals from courtrooms or hearing rooms to the ex-
tent necessary to safeguard the identity of a woman 
described in paragraph (1) from public disclosure. 
‘‘(3) PSEUDONYM REQUIRED.—In the absence 
of written consent of the woman upon whom an 
abortion has been performed or attempted, any 
party, other than a public official, who brings an ac-
tion under this section shall do so under a pseu-
donym. 
‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—This subsection may not be 
construed to conceal the identity of the plaintiff or 
of witnesses from the defendant or from attorneys 
for the defendant.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
of chapter 13 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘250. Discrimination by abortion against an unborn child on the basis of Down 
syndrome prohibited.’’. 
SEC. 3. SEVERABILITY. 
If any portion of this Act, or the amendments made 
by this Act, or the application thereof to any person or 
circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not af-
fect the portions or applications of this Act which can be 
given effect without the invalid portion or application. 
Æ 
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