This legislation is needed to ensure that babies born alive during an abortion receive the same degree of professional skill and care to protect the newborn as would be offered to any other child born alive at the same gestational age.

This bill would:

• Establish requirements for the degree of care a health care practitioner must exercise in the event a child is born alive following an abortion or attempted abortion;
• require a health care practitioner who is present to (1) exercise the same degree of care as reasonably provided to another child born alive at the same gestational age, and (2) immediately admit the child to a hospital;
• require a health care practitioner or other employee to immediately report any failure to comply with this requirement to law enforcement;
• subject to a fine, up to five years in prison, or both, a person who violates the requirements to criminal penalties;
• subject to prosecution for murder, an individual who intentionally kills or attempts to kill a child born alive;
• bar the criminal prosecution of a mother of a child born alive for conspiracy to violate these provisions, for being an accessory after the fact, or for concealment of felony;
• allow a woman who undergoes an abortion or attempted abortion to file a civil action for damages against an individual who violates this legislation.