Federal

Women’s Health Protection Act of 2023

Source: Congress.gov · 7,980 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill protects a person's right to end a pregnancy before it reaches viability (the point when a fetus could survive outside the womb). It also protects doctors and health care providers' right to offer abortion services. The bill prevents states and the federal government from creating laws that limit these rights in ways that go beyond what applies to other similar medical procedures. ---

Who It Affects

- Pregnant people seeking abortion services - Health care providers offering abortion services (doctors, nurse-midwives, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, physician assistants) - Hospitals and clinics providing abortion care - States that have passed abortion restrictions - People who travel to other states for abortion services - People who help or support others getting abortion services ---

Key Provisions

- Before viability, people have the right to end their pregnancy without limits or requirements that single out abortion or make it harder to access than other similar medical procedures (Sec. 5(a)(1)) - Health care providers cannot be required to perform unnecessary tests, offer medically inaccurate information, or require multiple in-person visits before providing abortion services (Sec. 5(a)(1)(E), (F), (H)) - After viability, abortion is allowed only when a doctor believes it is necessary to protect the pregnant person's life or health (Sec. 5(a)(2)(A)) - People have the right to travel to another state to get abortion services, and to help others do the same (Sec. 6) - States cannot restrict abortion through telemedicine or prevent doctors from prescribing reproductive health medications based on their medical judgment (Sec. 5(a)(1)(B), (C)) - Anyone harmed by a law violating this act can sue in federal court, and the court must award attorney's fees to people who win their cases (Sec. 9(b), (e)) ---

What Changes

If this bill becomes law, states would no longer be able to enforce abortion restrictions that conflict with these rights. Laws like waiting periods, parental consent requirements, and facility regulations that don't apply to other medical procedures would become unenforceable. The federal government could sue states that violate the act. Individuals and health care providers could also file lawsuits to stop enforcement of conflicting state laws. State laws passed before or after this act that contradict it would be overridden, except for laws about clinic entrance access, insurance coverage decisions, and general contract law. ---

Important Definitions

- **Abortion services**: An abortion plus any medical or non-medical services connected to it - **Viability**: The point in pregnancy when, in a doctor's honest medical judgment, there is a reasonable chance the fetus could survive outside the womb with or without artificial support - **Health care provider**: Hospitals, clinics, pharmacies, physicians, nurse-midwives, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, or physician assistants that provide or seek to provide health care including abortion services - **Medically comparable procedures**: Medical procedures with similar health risks, complexity, or required clinical settings - **Pregnancy**: The period beginning when a fertilized egg implants in the uterus - **State**: Includes the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, all U.S. territories, and local governments like counties and cities ---

Effective Date

This act takes effect immediately upon being signed into law (Sec. 10)

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 12 To protect a person’s ability to determine whether to continue or end a pregnancy, and to protect a health care provider’s ability to provide abortion services. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 30, 2023 Ms. CHU (for herself, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. AGUILAR, Mr. ALLRED, Mr. AUCHINCLOSS, Ms. BALINT, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. BERA, Mr. BEYER, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. BOWMAN, Ms. BROWN, Ms. BROWNLEY, Ms. BUDZINSKI, Ms. BUSH, Ms. CARAVEO, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. CARSON, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Mr. CASAR, Mr. CASTEN, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Mr. CICILLINE, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. COHEN, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. COURTNEY, Ms. CRAIG, Ms. CROCKETT, Mr. CROW, Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. DEAN of Pennsylvania, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. DELUZIO, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. ESCOBAR, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. EVANS, Mrs. FLETCHER, Mr. FOSTER, Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Florida, Mr. FROST, Mr. GARAMENDI, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California, Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Ms. PEREZ, Mr. GOLDMAN of New York, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. GOTTHEIMER, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. HIMES, Mr. HORSFORD, Ms. HOULAHAN, Ms. HOYLE of Oregon, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. IVEY, Mr. JACKSON of North Carolina, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. JACOBS, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. JEFFRIES, Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. KILMER, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. KUSTER, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. LAR- SON of Connecticut, Mrs. LEE of Nevada, Ms. LEE of California, Ms. LEE of Pennsylvania, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. LIEU, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. MAGAZINER, Ms. MANNING, Ms. MATSUI, Mrs. MCBATH, Mrs. MCCLELLAN, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. MEEKS, Ms. MENG, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. MORELLE, Mr. MOSKOWITZ, Mr. MOULTON, Mr. MRVAN, Mr. MULLIN, Mr. NADLER, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. NEAL, Mr. NICKEL, Mr. NORCROSS, Ms. NOR- TON, Ms. OMAR, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. PANETTA, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. PETERS, Ms. PETTERSEN, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. POCAN, Ms. PORTER, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. RASKIN, Mr. THANEDAR, Ms. ROSS, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Mr. RYAN, Ms. SALINAS, VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 12 IH Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. SARBANES, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. SCHNEIDER, Ms. SCHRIER, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Ms. SE- WELL, Mr. SHERMAN, Ms. SHERRILL, Ms. SLOTKIN, Mr. SMITH of Wash- ington, Mr. SORENSEN, Ms. STANSBURY, Mr. STANTON, Ms. STEVENS, Ms. STRICKLAND, Mr. SWALWELL, Mrs. SYKES, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Ms. TITUS, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. TOKUDA, Mr. TONKO, Mrs. TORRES of California, Mr. TORRES of New York, Mrs. TRAHAN, Mr. TRONE, Ms. UNDERWOOD, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. WEXTON, Ms. WILD, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mrs. HAYES, Mr. MFUME, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. KIM of New Jersey, Mr. COSTA, Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ, Ms. CLARK of Massachu- setts, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. VASQUEZ, Ms. SPANBERGER, Mr. LANDSMAN, Mr. KEATING, Mrs. FOUSHEE, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. HOYER, Mr. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. SOTO, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Mr. PHILLIPS, Ms. PLASKETT, Mr. GOLDEN of Maine, Mr. MCGARVEY, Mr. RUIZ, Ms. SCHOLTEN, Mrs. PELTOLA, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. CASE, Mr. NEGUSE, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Ms. WATERS, Mr. VARGAS, Mrs. RAMIREZ, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. VEASEY, and Mr. CORREA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a pe- riod to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for con- sideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com- mittee concerned A BILL To protect a person’s ability to determine whether to con- tinue or end a pregnancy, and to protect a health care provider’s ability to provide abortion services. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Women’s Health Pro- 4 tection Act of 2023’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 12 IH (1) Abortion services are essential health care, 1 and access to those services is central to people’s 2 ability to participate equally in the economic and so- 3 cial life of the United States. Abortion access allows 4 people who are pregnant to make their own decisions 5 about their pregnancies, their families, and their 6 lives. 7 (2) Reproductive justice requires every indi- 8 vidual to have the right to make their own decisions 9 about having children regardless of their cir- 10 cumstances and without interference and discrimina- 11 tion. Reproductive justice is a human right that can 12 and will be achieved when all people, regardless of 13 actual or perceived race, color, national origin, immi- 14 gration status, sex (including gender identity, sex 15 stereotyping, or sexual orientation), age, or disability 16 status have the economic, social, and political power 17 and resources to define and make decisions about 18 their bodies, health, sexuality, families, and commu- 19 nities in all areas of their lives, with dignity and 20 self-determination. 21 (3) Abortion care, like all health care, is a 22 human right that should not depend on one’s ZIP 23 Code or region, age, actual or perceived race, na- 24 tional origin, immigration status, sex, or disability 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 12 IH status. Unfortunately, this is the current reality for 1 millions, creating a patchwork of abortion access 2 across the United States. Protecting the right to de- 3 termine whether to continue or end a pregnancy, 4 and the right of health care providers to provide 5 abortion care, is necessary and essential to achieving 6 this human right, and ultimately reproductive jus- 7 tice. 8 (4) On June 24, 2022, in its decision in Dobbs 9 v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the Su- 10 preme Court overruled Roe v. Wade, reversing dec- 11 ades of precedent recognizing a constitutional right 12 to terminate a pregnancy before fetal viability. 13 (5) The effects of the Dobbs decision were im- 14 mediate and disastrous. In the aftermath of the 15 Dobbs decision, many States imposed near-total 16 bans on abortion. As of March 2023, abortion is un- 17 available in 14 States, leaving 17.8 million women of 18 reproductive age (15–49) and transgender and gen- 19 der nonconforming individuals with the capacity to 20 become pregnant without abortion access in their 21 home State. Within 100 days of the ruling, 66 clin- 22 ics across 15 States were forced to stop offering 23 abortions. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 12 IH (6) Travel time to an abortion clinic, already a 1 burden for abortion seekers under Roe, has more 2 than tripled since Dobbs. As distance to an abortion 3 facility increases, so do the accompanying (and po- 4 tentially prohibitive) burdens of time off work or 5 school, lost wages, transportation costs, lodging, 6 child care costs, and other ancillary costs. 7 (7) Even before the Dobbs decision, access to 8 abortion services had long been obstructed across 9 the United States in various ways, including: prohi- 10 bitions of, and restrictions on, insurance coverage; 11 mandatory parental involvement laws; restrictions 12 that shame and stigmatize people seeking abortion 13 services; and medically unnecessary regulations that 14 fail to further the safety of abortion services, but in- 15 stead cause harm people by delaying, complicating 16 access to, and reducing the availability of, abortion 17 services. 18 (8) Being denied an abortion can have serious 19 consequences for people’s physical, mental, and eco- 20 nomic health and well-being, and that of their fami- 21 lies. According to the Turnaway Study, a longitu- 22 dinal study published by Advancing New Standards 23 In Reproductive Health (ANSIRH) in 2019, individ- 24 uals who are denied a wanted abortion are more 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 12 IH likely to experience economic insecurity than individ- 1 uals who receive a wanted abortion. After following 2 participants for five years, the study found that peo- 3 ple who were denied abortion care were more likely 4 to live in poverty, experience debt, and have lower 5 credit scores for several years after the denial. These 6 findings demonstrate that when people have control 7 over when to have children and how many children 8 to have, their children benefit through increased eco- 9 nomic security and better maternal bonding. 10 (9) Abortion bans and restrictions have reper- 11 cussions for a broad range of health care beyond 12 pregnancy termination, including exacerbating the 13 existing maternal health crisis facing the United 14 States. The United States has the highest maternal 15 mortality rate of any industrialized nations, and 16 Black women and birthing people face three times 17 the risk of dying from pregnancy related causes as 18 their white counterparts. Even prior to Dobbs, re- 19 search found that States that enacted abortion re- 20 strictions based on gestation increased their mater- 21 nal mortality rate by 38 percent. Research has 22 found that a nationwide ban would increase the 23 United States maternal mortality rate by an addi- 24 tional 24 percent. Furthermore, States that have 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 12 IH banned, are planning to ban, or have severely re- 1 stricted abortion care have fewer maternal health 2 providers, more maternity care deserts, higher rates 3 of both maternal and infant mortality, and greater 4 racial inequity in health care. 5 (10) Abortion bans and restrictions additionally 6 harm people’s health by reducing access to other es- 7 sential health care services offered by many of the 8 providers targeted by the restrictions, including— 9 (A) screenings and preventive services, in- 10 cluding contraceptive services; 11 (B) testing and treatment for sexually 12 transmitted infections; 13 (C) LGBTQ health services; and 14 (D) referrals for primary care, intimate 15 partner violence prevention, prenatal care, and 16 adoption services. 17 (11) This ripple effect has only worsened since 18 the Dobbs decision. Clinicians and pharmacists have 19 denied access to essential medication for conditions 20 including gastric ulcers and autoimmune diseases be- 21 cause those drugs are also used for medication abor- 22 tion care. Patients are reporting being denied or de- 23 layed in their receipt of necessary and potentially 24 lifesaving treatment for ectopic pregnancies and mis- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 12 IH carriage management because of the newfound legal 1 risks facing providers. 2 (12) Reproductive justice seeks to address re- 3 strictions on reproductive health, including abortion, 4 that perpetuate systems of oppression, lack of bodily 5 autonomy, white supremacy, and anti-Black racism. 6 This violent legacy has manifested in policies includ- 7 ing enslavement, rape, and experimentation on Black 8 women; forced sterilizations, medical experimen- 9 tation on low-income women’s reproductive systems; 10 and the forcible removal of Indigenous children. Ac- 11 cess to equitable reproductive health care, including 12 abortion services, has always been deficient in the 13 United States for Black, Indigenous, Latina/x, Asian 14 American and Pacific Islander, and People of Color 15 (BIPOC) and their families. 16 (13) The legacy of restrictions on reproductive 17 health, rights, and justice is not a dated vestige of 18 a dark history. Data show the harms of abortion- 19 specific restrictions fall especially heavily on people 20 with low incomes, people of color, immigrants, young 21 people, people with disabilities, and those living in 22 rural and other medically underserved areas. Abor- 23 tion bans and restrictions are compounded further 24 by the ongoing criminalization of people who are 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 12 IH pregnant, including those who are incarcerated, liv- 1 ing with HIV, or with substance-use disorders. 2 These populations already experience health dispari- 3 ties due to social, political, and environmental in- 4 equities, and restrictions on abortion services exacer- 5 bate these harms. Removing bans and restrictions on 6 abortion services would constitute one important 7 step on the path toward realizing reproductive jus- 8 tice by ensuring that the full range of reproductive 9 health care is accessible to all who need it. 10 (14) Abortion bans and restrictions are tools of 11 gender oppression, as they target health care serv- 12 ices that are used primarily by women. These pater- 13 nalistic bans and restrictions rely on and reinforce 14 harmful stereotypes about gender roles and women’s 15 decisionmaking, undermining their ability to control 16 their own lives and well-being. These restrictions 17 harm the basic autonomy, dignity, and equality of 18 women. 19 (15) The terms ‘‘woman’’ and ‘‘women’’ are 20 used in this bill to reflect the identity of the majority 21 of people targeted and most directly affected by bans 22 and restrictions on abortion services, which are root- 23 ed in misogyny. However, access to abortion services 24 is critical to the health of every person capable of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H12.IH H12 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 12 IH becoming pregnant. This Act is intended to protect 1 all people with the capacity for pregnancy— 2 cisgender women, transgender men, nonbinary indi- 3 viduals, those who identify with a different gender, 4 and others—who are unjustly harmed by restrictions 5 on abo [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]

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