S 2955
Forced Abortion Prevention and Accountability Act
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Bill overview
This bill, titled the Forced Abortion Prevention and Accountability Act, aims to establish federal penalties for administering abortion-inducing drugs to a pregnant woman without her informed consent, specifically when those drugs are shipped or transported across state lines. It creates a new criminal offense for such actions, with potential fines and imprisonment, and also establishes a civil remedy for women who have been subjected to such practices, allowing them to seek monetary and punitive damages. The bill also clarifies definitions related to abortion and informed consent.
Key provisions
- Criminalizes the administration of abortion-inducing drugs without informed consent in interstate commerce.
- Establishes penalties of up to 25 years in prison for those who administer such drugs.
- Increases penalties to include up to 50 years in prison if the administration results in serious bodily injury or death.
- Provides a civil remedy for women who have been subjected to non-consensual administration of abortion-inducing drugs.
- Allows civil lawsuits seeking monetary damages, statutory damages, and punitive damages.
- Awards attorney’s fees to prevailing plaintiffs in civil actions.
- Defines ‘abortion-inducing drug’ to include medications like mifepristone and misoprostol.
- Requires a woman to provide informed consent before taking an abortion-inducing drug.
Who is affected
- Pregnant women
- Healthcare providers who administer abortion-inducing drugs
- Individuals involved in the shipping or transportation of abortion-inducing drugs
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119th CONGRESS — 1st Session
S. 2955
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
A BILL
To amend title 18, United States Code, to establish Federal penalties for the knowing and intentional administration of any abortion-inducing drug to a woman without her informed consent, if the abortion-inducing drug has been shipped or transported in interstate commerce, and for other purposes.
This Act may be cited as the Forced Abortion Prevention and Accountability Act
.
Chapter 74 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1531 the following:
Except as provided in subsection (c), whoever, in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce, knowingly and intentionally administers to a pregnant woman an abortion-inducing drug without the informed consent of the woman shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 25 years, or both.
Whoever attempts or conspires to commit an offense under subsection (a) shall be subject to the same penalties as those prescribed for the offense.
If the non-consensual administration of an abortion-inducing drug as described in subsection (a) results in serious bodily injury or death to the woman to whom the abortion-inducing drug was administered, the offender shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for not more than 25 years in addition to any term of imprisonment under subsection (a), or both.
A woman who was administered an abortion-inducing drug in violation of subsection (a) may, in a civil action against any person who administered the abortion-inducing drug, attempted to administer the abortion-inducing drug, or conspired to commit an offense described in subsection (a) or (b), obtain appropriate relief in accordance with paragraph (2).
Appropriate relief in a civil action under this subsection includes—
objectively verifiable money damages for all injuries, psychological and physical, occasioned by the violation;
statutory damages equal to 3 times the cost of all injuries occasioned by the violation; and
punitive damages.
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.
If a defendant in a civil action under this subsection prevails and the court finds that the plaintiff’s suit was frivolous, the court shall award a reasonable attorney’s fee in favor of the defendant against the plaintiff.
In this section:
The term abortion means the use or prescription of any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance or device—
to intentionally kill the unborn child of a woman known to be pregnant; or
to intentionally terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant, with an intention other than—
after viability, to produce a live birth and preserve the life and health of the child born alive; or
to remove a dead unborn child.
The term abortion-inducing drug means any drug, medicine, or substance prescribed, dispensed, or administered with the intent to cause an abortion, including mifepristone or misoprostol.
The term conspires to commit an offense includes selling, sending by shipping or mailing, or giving an abortion-inducing drug without taking reasonable measures to ensure the individual requesting the drug is a pregnant woman wishing to obtain an abortion.
The term informed consent means voluntary, knowing agreement by a woman to ingest an abortion-inducing drug, given after being fully informed of the nature, purpose, risks, and potential consequences of the use of the abortion-inducing drug.
The term serious bodily injury has the meaning given the term in section 1365.
The term unborn child has the meaning given the term in section 1841.
The table of sections for chapter 74 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
The chapter heading for chapter 74 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking Partial-birth abortions
and inserting Abortions
.
The item relating to chapter 74 in the table of chapters at the beginning of part I of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking Partial-birth abortions
and inserting Abortions
.