[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8855 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8855
To amend title 18, United States Code, to protect unborn children.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 27, 2024
Mr. Good of Virginia (for himself, Mr. Lamborn, Mr. Duncan, and Mr.
Rosendale) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on
the Judiciary, Natural Resources, Ways and Means, and Oversight and
Accountability, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 18, United States Code, to protect unborn children.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF CONSTITUTIONAL
AUTHORITY FOR ENACTMENT.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) The dignity of every human life is reflected in our
Nation's founding principles, ``Life, Liberty and the Pursuit
of Happiness''.
(2) Abortion ends the life of a person entitled to rights
under the Constitution and the laws of this Nation. Since the
1973 decision of Roe v. Wade, over 60,000,000 abortions have
ended the lives of unborn children. Unborn children are among
the most vulnerable and deserve full and equal protection of
the law.
(3) Congress exercised its authority under the Commerce
Clause when it enacted the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of
2003 and has used that authority to enact other criminal
statutes, such as the prohibition on female genital mutilation
(18 U.S.C. 116).
(4) The Supreme Court has broadly interpreted Congress'
power to regulate interstate commerce, holding that it applies
to activities with a substantial economic effect or that,
cumulatively, affect commerce. See, e.g., NLRB v. Jones &
Laughlin Steel Corp., 301 U.S. 1 (1937); United States v.
Darby, 312 U.S. 657 (1941); and Wickard v. Filburn, 317 U.S.
111 (1942).
(5) Abortion often involves commercial activity between
states and across foreign borders. This includes the
manufacturing and distribution of drugs that cause abortion and
the use of equipment, instruments, and other supplies that have
traveled in interstate commerce to perform surgical abortions.
See, e.g., Scarborough v. United States, 431 U.S. 563 (1977).
(6) Article I, section 8, clause 1 of the Constitution
grants Congress broad spending powers, which Congress may
attach conditions to: ``The Congress shall have Power To lay
and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the
Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of
the United States''. Furthermore, in clause 18 Congress can
``make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for
carrying into Executive the foregoing Powers . . .''. The
Supreme Court has upheld this generally in cases like South
Dakota v. Dole and in regard to abortion in Harris v. McRae.
(7) Through the decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health
Organization, handed down in June 2022, the Supreme Court has
redressed and corrected the grave injustice which for 50 years
had been perpetuated by their decisions in Roe v. Wade, Doe v.
Bolton, and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, allowing Congress and
State legislators to enact legislation to limit abortion as the
legislators see fit. The Court declared that ``the Constitution
does not confer a right to abortion'' (Dobbs v. Jackson Women's
Health Org., 142 S. Ct. 2228, 2234 (2022)).
(8) The Supreme Court has held that ``[i]t is time to heed
the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the
people's elected representatives'' (Dobbs v. Jackson Women's
Health Organization, 142 S. Ct. 2228, 2243 (2022)).
(9) The Supreme Court has also held that ``[a] law
regulating abortion, like other health and welfare laws, is
entitled to a `strong presumption of validity.' . . . It must
be sustained if there is a rational basis on which the
legislature could have thought that it would serve legitimate
State interests . . . These legitimate interests include
respect for and preservation of prenatal life at all stages of
development . . . ; the protection of maternal health and
safety; the elimination of particularly gruesome or barbaric
medical procedures; the preservation of the integrity of the
medical profession; the mitigation of fetal pain; and the
prevention of discrimination on the basis of race, sex, or
disability.'' (Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization,
142 S. Ct. at 2239).
(10) Medical and other authorities now know more about
human prenatal development than ever before, including that
life begins at the moment of conception and the child in a
woman's womb is a human being.
(11) Even if there exists some degree of uncertainty about
an aspect of prenatal development, the Supreme Court has held
that Congress and State legislatures retain ``wide discretion
to pass legislation'' (Gonzales v. Carhart, 550 U.S. at 163).
``The law need not give abortion doctors unfettered choice in
the course of their medical practice, nor should it elevate
their status above other physicians in the medical community''
(Gonzales v. Carhart, 550 U.S. at 163). ``Medical uncertainty
does not foreclose the exercise of legislative power in the
abortion context any more than it does in other contexts''
(Gonzales v. Carhart, 550 U.S. at 164).
(12) Scientific evidence and personal testimonies document
the massive harm that abortion causes to women. Abortion
heightens the risk of mental health issues with studies showing
that after an abortion women are 34 percent more likely to
develop anxiety disorders, 37 percent more likely to develop
depression, 110 percent more likely to rely on alcohol use or
abuse, 115 percent more likely to develop suicidal behavior,
and 220 percent more likely to take on marijuana use or abuse.
As many as 60 percent of women having an abortion experience
some level of emotional distress afterwards, with 30 percent
being classified as severe distress. Abortion also includes
risks to physical health such as heavy or persistent bleeding,
damage to cervix, abdominal pain or cramping, scarring of
uterine lining, breast cancer, future premature births or
miscarriages, infection or sepsis, placenta previa, perforation
of uterus, damage to other organs, and even death.
(13) More than 50 percent of abortions nationwide are
committed by chemical abortion. Many of these abortions are
obtained through telehealth visits and without the supervision
of a licensed medical care professional.
(14) Every State has enacted a ``safe haven'' law,
relieving the responsibility of childcare for parents who do
not wish to care for a child.
(15) Public attitudes favoring adoption have created a
culture of adoption in the United States, with many families
waiting long periods of time to adopt newborn infants.
(16) Abortion disproportionately affects minority
communities. Black babies are 3.4 times more likely to be
aborted as White babies. An estimated 19,000,000 Black babies
have been killed by abortion since 1973. Minorities have been
the unwitting victims of a hidden racist agenda of the abortion
industry for over 50 years.
(b) Purpose.--It is the intent of this Act to ensure that abortion
is abolished and to protect the lives of unborn children.
SEC. 2. PROHIBITION AGAINST CERTAIN ABORTION MEASURES.
(a) In General.--Chapter 74 of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by amending section 1531 to read as follows:
``Sec. 1531. Prohibition against certain abortion measures
``(a) Criminal Offense.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, a licensed physician who--
``(1) in the circumstances described in subsection (d),
intentionally performs or attempts to perform an abortion at
any point after fertilization; or
``(2) receives any Federal funds under any covered program
that intentionally performs or attempts to perform an abortion
at any point after fertilization,
```shall be guilty of a class D felony.'.
``(b) Civil Remedies.--
``(1) Without consent.--A woman upon whom an abortion was
performed or attempted, without consent or that occurred under
duress, fraud, or inducement, may bring in an appropriate court
a civil action against the licensed physician in violation of
subsection (a) to obtain appropriate relief.
``(2) Remedy for parent of a minor.--A parent of a minor
upon whom an abortion has been performed or attempted may bring
in an appropriate court a civil action against the licensed
physician in violation of subsection (a) to obtain appropriate
relief.
``(3) Appropriate relief defined.--In this subsection, the
term `appropriate relief' includes--
``(A) money damages for all injuries, psychological
and physical, occasioned by the violation of this
section;
``(B) statutory damages equal to the amount that is
three times the cost of the abortion;
``(C) punitive damages; and
``(D) reasonable attorneys' fees and costs.
``(c) Affirmative Defense.--It is an affirmative defense to
prosecution under this section if--
``(1) a licensed physician provides medical treatment to a
pregnant woman which results in the accidental or unintentional
injury or death to an unborn child; or
``(2) the abortion was performed with the purpose of--
``(A) saving the life of a pregnant woman whose
life is endangered by a physical disorder, physical
illness, or physical injury, including a life-
endangering physical condition caused by or arising
from the pregnancy itself, but not including
psychological or emotional conditions;
``(B) removing a dead unborn child caused by
miscarriage or stillbirth; or
``(C) removing an ectopic pregnancy.
``(d) Circumstances Described.--For the purposes of subsection (a),
the circumstances described are that:
``(1) The licensed physician performed an abortion using a
means, channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate or
foreign commerce in furtherance of or in connection with the
conduct described in subsection (a).
``(2) A payment of any kind was made, directly or
indirectly, in furtherance of or in connection with the conduct
described in subsection (a) using any means, channel, facility,
or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce or in or
affecting interstate or foreign commerce.
``(3) Any instrument, item, substance, or other object that
has traveled in interstate or foreign commerce was used to
perform the conduct described in subsection (a).
``(4) The conduct described in subsection (a) occurred
within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the
United States, or any territory or possession of the United
States.
``(5) The conduct described in subsection (a) otherwise
occurred in or affected interstate or foreign commerce.
``(6) The conduct described in subsection (a) occurred in
the District of Columbia.
``(7) The conduct described in subsection (a) occurred in a
health care facility owned or operated by the Federal
Government.
``(e) Rules of Construction.--
``(1) In general.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed to--
``(A) authorize the criminal prosecution or
conviction of a woman with the death of her own unborn
child;
``(B) impose civil or criminal liability on a woman
upon whom an abortion is performed or attempted;
``(C) prohibit the administration of misoprostol
for the purposes of treatment of a miscarriage or
stillbirth; or
``(D) prohibit the sale, use, prescription, or
administration of contraception, if the contraception
is sold, used, prescribed or administered in accordance
with manufacturer instructions or for non-life-ending
purposes.
``(2) State legislation.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed to override or enforce a greater penalty established
by State law with respect to the protection of the life of an
unborn child at any point after fertilization.
``(f) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Abortion.--The term `abortion' means the act of
using, prescribing, administering, procuring, or selling any
instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance, device, or
means with the purpose to terminate a pregnancy of a woman,
with knowledge that the termination by any of those means will
with reasonable likelihood cause the death of the unborn child.
``(2) Contraception.--The term `contraception' is a
measure, drug, or chemical that prevents a pregnancy before
fertilization.
``(3) Covered program.--The term `covered program' means:
``(A) The program for medical assistance
established under title XIX of the Social Security Act.
``(B) The State children's health insurance program
established under title XXI of the Social Security Act.
``(C) The Indian Health Service.
``(D) The Veterans Health Administration.
``(E) The TRICARE program (as such program is
defined in section 1072(7) of title 10).
``(F) Any project grant or contract for family
planning services awarded under title X of the Public
Health Services Act.
``(4) Fertilization.--The term `fertilization' means the
fusion of a human spermatozoon with a human ovum.
``(5) Licensed physician.--The term `licensed physician'
means a doctor of medicine or osteopathy legally authorized to
practice medicine and surgery by the State in which the doctor
performs such activity, or any other individual legally
authorized by the State to perform abortions.
``(6) Miscarriage.--The term `miscarriage' is the
spontaneous loss of pregnancy before 20 weeks of pregnancy.
``(7) Stillbirth.--The term `stillbirth' means the loss of
a baby at or after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
``(8) Unborn child.--The term `unborn child' means an
individual organism of the species Homo sapiens from
fertilization until live birth.''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for chapter 74 of
title 18, United States Code, the item relating to section 1531 is
amended to read as follows:
``1531. Prohibition against certain abortion measures.''.
(c) Chapter Heading.--The header of chapter 74 of title 18, United
States Code, is amended by striking ``PARTIAL-BIRTH ABORTIONS'' and
inserting ``ABORTIONS''.
SEC. 3. PROHIBITION OF ABORTIONS IN HEALTH PROGRAMS THAT ACCEPT FEDERAL
FUNDS.
(a) Medicaid.--Section 1902 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1396a) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(uu) Prohibition on State Plan Coverage of Abortion.--
Notwithstanding subsection (b), beginning on January 1 of the second
year beginning on or after the date of the enactment of this
subsection, the Secretary may not approve a State plan for medical
assistance under this section, and shall revoke any such plan in effect
as of such date, if such State plan provides payment for abortion (as
such term is defined in section 1531 of title 18) furnished at any
point after fertilization, except to save the life of a pregnant woman
whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness, or
physical injury, including a life-endangering physical condition caused
by or arising from the pregnancy itself, but not including
psychological or emotional conditions.''.
(b) Children's Health Insurance Program.--
(1) In general.--Section 2107(e)(1) of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 1397gg(e)(1)) is amended by adding at the end
the following new subparagraph:
``(U) Section 1902(uu) (relating to prohibition on
payment for abortion).''.
(2) Conforming amendments.--
(A) Limitation on funds provided to state.--Section
2105(c)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1397ee(c)(1)) is amended by striking ``the mother or if
the pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or
incest'' and inserting ``a pregnant woman whose life is
endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness, or
physical injury, including a life-endangering physical
condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy
itself, but not including psychological or emotional
conditions''.
(B) Child health assistance defined.--Section
2110(a)(16) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1397jj(a)(16)) is amended by striking ``the mother or
if the pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or
incest'' and inserting ``a pregnant woman whose life is
endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness, or
physical injury, including a life-endangering physical
condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy
itself, but not including psychological or emotional
conditions''.
(c) Amendment to Indian Health Care Improvement Act.--Title II of
the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.) is
amended by adding at the end a new section:
``SEC. 227. PROHIBITION A