Indicates Matter Stricken

Indicates New Matter

Amended

April 25, 2023

H. 3774

Introduced by Reps. McCravy, G. M. Smith, Hiott, W. Newton, Pope, Yow, M. M. Smith, Hardee, J. E. Johnson, Hixon, Bustos, Erickson, Landing, Davis, Crawford, B. L. Cox, Connell, Vaughan, Ligon, T. Moore, Moss, Lawson, Hyde, Leber, B. J. Cox, Wooten, Whitmire, Long, Gagnon, Bradley, Herbkersman, Nutt, Mitchell, B. Newton, Jordan, Brewer, Murphy, Gilliam, Willis, Blackwell, Elliott, Guest, Oremus, Felder, Chapman, Haddon, S. Jones, Pace, Gibson, Robbins, Burns, Chumley and Forrest

S. Printed 04/25/23--S.                                                                        [SEC 4/26/2023 11:57 AM]

Read the first time February 16, 2023

________

A bill

to amend the South Carolina Code of Laws by enacting the "Human Life Protection Act"; by adding article 7 to Chapter 41, Title 44 so as to ban abortions in this State, to provide for exceptions to the ban on abortions, to protect the use of contraceptives and alternative reproductive technologies, to provide penalties, to provide a civil cause of action for failure to comply with the requirements of this article, to provide that a woman cannot be prosecuted for having an abortion, to provide that physicians or other licensed professionals shall lose their license for violations of this article, and to provide that a woman's name may remain anonymous in proceedings initiated pursuant to this article; by adding Section 44-41-90 so as to provide that the State Health Insurance Program may not pay for abortions, to prohibit state funds from being used for the purchase of fetal tissue or fetal remains obtained from an abortion, and to defund planned parenthood; by adding Section 63-17-325 so as to require a biological father to pay child support beginning at conception; by adding Section 38-71-146 so as to require all individual and group health insurance and HMO policies to cover contraceptives; by requiring the south carolina public employee benefit authority to cover prescribed contraceptives for dependents; by amending Section 44-41-710, relating to Construction and application of this article, so as to remove language related to implicit repeal; by amending Section 44-41-480, relating to Construction against implicit repeal of existing law, so as to remove language related to implicit repeal; by repealing section 44-41-20 relating to legal abortions; by amending Section 44-41-70, relating to Promulgation of rules and regulations for certification of hospitals and other facilities, so as to delete a reference to section 44-41-20; and by providing an unconditional right to intervene in challenges to this act by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

    Amend Title To Conform

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1.  This act may be cited as the "Human Life Protection Act".

SECTION 2.  Chapter 41, Title 44 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:

    Article 7

    Human Life Protection Act

    Section 44-41-810. For the purposes of this article:

    (1) "Abortion" means the act of using or prescribing any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance, device, or means with the intent to terminate the clinically diagnosable pregnancy of a woman with knowledge that the termination by those means will, with reasonable likelihood, cause the death of the unborn human being. Such use, prescription, or means is not an abortion if done with the intent to save the life or preserve the health of the unborn human being, or to remove a dead unborn human being.

    (2) "Clinically diagnosable pregnancy" means the point in time when it is possible to determine that a woman is pregnant due to the detectible presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG).

    (3) "Female" means a biological female assigned at the time of birth or an intersexed person capable of producing an ovum at birth.

    (4) "Fatal fetal anomaly" means that, in reasonable medical judgment, an unborn child has a profound and irremediable congenital or chromosomal anomaly that, with or without the provision of life-preserving treatment, would be incompatible with sustaining life after birth.

    (5) "Physician" means any person licensed in this State to p