Second Chance at Life Act of 2023

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 983 To ensure that a woman seeking a chemical abortion is informed that it may be possible to reverse the intended effects of the abortion if the woman changes her mind, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 10, 2023 Mr. LAMBORN (for himself, Mr. PFLUGER, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. BABIN, Mr. GROTHMAN, Mr. MOONEY, Mr. BAIRD, Mr. FLEISCHMANN, Mr. BANKS, Mr. ESTES, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mr. JOYCE of Pennsylvania, Mr. WENSTRUP, Mr. JACKSON of Texas, Mr. CLOUD, Mr. JOHNSON of Lou- isiana, Mr. KUSTOFF, Mr. HERN, Mr. C. SCOTT FRANKLIN of Florida, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Mr. GUEST, Mr. MOOLENAAR, Mr. GOOD of Virginia, Mr. GAETZ, and Mrs. LESKO) introduced the following bill; which was re- ferred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To ensure that a woman seeking a chemical abortion is informed that it may be possible to reverse the intended effects of the abortion if the woman changes her mind, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Second Chance at Life 4 Act of 2023’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 983 IH SEC. 2. ABORTION PILL REVERSAL INFORMED CONSENT. 1 The Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 201 et 2 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 3 ‘‘TITLE XXXIV—ABORTION PILL 4 REVERSAL INFORMED CONSENT 5 ‘‘SEC. 3401. DEFINITIONS. 6 ‘‘In this title: 7 ‘‘(1) ABORTION PROVIDER.—The term ‘abortion 8 provider’ means any person licensed to perform a 9 chemical abortion under applicable Federal and 10 State laws. 11 ‘‘(2) CHEMICAL ABORTION.—The term ‘chem- 12 ical abortion’ means the use or prescription of an 13 abortion-inducing drug dispensed with the intent to 14 cause the death of the unborn child. 15 ‘‘(3) UNBORN CHILD.—The term ‘unborn child’ 16 means a member of the species homo sapiens, at any 17 stage of development prior to birth. 18 ‘‘(4) WOMAN.—The term ‘woman’ means a fe- 19 male human being whether or not she has reached 20 the age of majority. 21 ‘‘SEC. 3402. ABORTION PILL REVERSAL INFORMED CON- 22 SENT. 23 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT OF COMPLIANCE BY PRO- 24 VIDERS.—Effective 30 days after the date of enactment 25 of the Second Chance at Life Act of 2023, any abortion 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 983 IH provider in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce, 1 who knowingly performs any chemical abortion, shall com- 2 ply with the requirements of this title. 3 ‘‘(b) INFORMED CONSENT.—Except in the case of a 4 medical emergency described in section 3403, a chemical 5 abortion involving the two drug process of dispensing 6 mifepristone first and then misoprostol shall not be per- 7 formed or induced or attempted to be performed or in- 8 duced without the following: 9 ‘‘(1) The woman is informed, by telephone or in 10 person, by the physician who is to perform the 11 chemical abortion, by a referring physician, or by an 12 agent of either physician at least 24 hours before 13 the chemical abortion, that— 14 ‘‘(A) it may be possible to reverse the in- 15 tended effects of a mifepristone-induced chem- 16 ical abortion if the woman changes her mind 17 but that time is of the essence; and 18 ‘‘(B) information on and assistance with 19 reversing the effects of a mifepristone-induced 20 chemical abortion is available on the website of 21 the Department of Health and Human Services 22 required by section 3405(b). 23 ‘‘(2) After the first drug involved in the two 24 drug process is dispensed in a mifepristone-induced 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 983 IH chemical abortion, the physician shall provide writ- 1 ten medical discharge instructions to the pregnant 2 woman which must include the statement: 3 ‘‘ ‘Recent developing research has indicated that 4 mifepristone alone is not always effective in ending a preg- 5 nancy. It may be possible to avoid, cease, or even to re- 6 verse the intended effects of a mifepristone-induced chem- 7 ical abortion if the second pill has not been taken. Please 8 consult with a health care professional immediately.’. 9 ‘‘SEC. 3403. EXCEPTION FOR MEDICAL EMERGENCIES. 10 ‘‘(a) EXCEPTION.—The provisions of section 3402 11 shall not apply in the case where a woman suffers from 12 a physical disorder, physical injury, or physical illness that 13 would, as certified by a physician, place the woman in dan- 14 ger of death unless an abortion is performed, including 15 a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising 16 from the pregnancy itself. 17 ‘‘(b) CERTIFICATION.—Upon a determination by an 18 abortion provider under subsection (a) that an abortion 19 is necessary to save the life of a mother, such provider 20 shall include in the medical file of the pregnant woman 21 a truthful and accurate certification of the specific medical 22 circumstances that support such determination. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 983 IH ‘‘SEC. 3404. SIGN POSTING. 1 ‘‘(a) POSTING.—Any private office, freestanding sur- 2 gical outpatient clinic or other facility, or clinic in which 3 chemical abortions, other than abortions necessary in the 4 case of a medical emergency described in section 3403, 5 are performed shall conspicuously post a sign (in a loca- 6 tion as described in subsection (c) so as to be clearly visi- 7 ble to patients) which reads: 8 ‘‘ ‘Research has indicated that mifepristone alone is 9 not always effective in ending a pregnancy and that its 10 effects can be blocked or reversed if the second pill has 11 not yet been taken. If you change your mind prior to tak- 12 ing the second pill and desire to attempt to save your preg- 13 nancy, consult with a health care professional imme- 14 diately.’.’’. 15 ‘‘(b) LETTERING; SIZE.—The sign required by sub- 16 section (a) shall be printed with lettering that is— 17 ‘‘(1) legible; and 18 ‘‘(2) at least three quarters of an inch boldfaced 19 type. 20 ‘‘(c) LOCATIONS.—A facility in which chemical abor- 21 tions are performed that is a private office or a free- 22 standing surgical outpatient clinic shall post the sign re- 23 quired by subsection (a) in each patient waiting room and 24 patient consultation room used by patients on whom chem- 25 ical abortions are performed. A hospital or any other facil- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 983 IH ity in which chemical abortions are performed that is not 1 a private office or freestanding surgical outpatient clinic 2 shall post the required sign in each patient admission area 3 used by patients on whom chemical abortions are per- 4 formed. 5 ‘‘SEC. 3405. PRINTED INFORMATION AND WEBSITE. 6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall publish, in 7 English and in each language which is the primary lan- 8 guage of 2 percent or more of the population of any State, 9 and shall cause to be available on the website required by 10 subsection (b), the following printed materials in such a 11 way as to ensure that the information is easily comprehen- 12 sible: 13 ‘‘(1) Materials designed to inform the woman of 14 the possibility of reversing the effects of a chemical 15 abortion utilizing mifepristone if she changes her 16 mind. 17 ‘‘(2) Materials on the assistance and resources 18 that may be available to help reverse the effects of 19 a chemical abortion. 20 ‘‘(b) WEBSITE.—Not later than 30 days after the 21 date of enactment of the Second Chance at Life Act of 22 2023, the Secretary shall develop and maintain a website 23 to provide the information described in subsection (a) in 24 accordance with the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 983 IH ‘‘(1) No information regarding who uses the 1 website shall be collected or maintained. 2 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall monitor on a regular 3 basis the website to prevent and correct tampering. 4 ‘‘(3) The website shall be maintained at a min- 5 imum resolution of 70 DPI (dots per inch). 6 ‘‘(4) All pictures appearing on the website shall 7 be a minimum of 200x300 pixels. 8 ‘‘(5) All letters on the website shall be a min- 9 imum of 12 point font. 10 ‘‘(6) All information and pictures on the 11 website shall be accessible with an industry standard 12 browser, requiring no additional plug-ins. 13 ‘‘SEC. 3406. CIVIL REMEDIES. 14 ‘‘(a) CIVIL SUITS FOR VIOLATION.—Except as pro- 15 vided in subsection (b), any of the following parties may 16 bring a civil action before the appropriate Federal district 17 court for actual and punitive damages against an abortion 18 provider who knowingly or recklessly performed or at- 19 tempted to perform a chemical abortion in violation of this 20 title: 21 ‘‘(1) A person upon whom such a chemical 22 abortion has been performed or attempted. 23 ‘‘(2) A father of an unborn child who is the 24 subject of such a chemical abortion. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 983 IH ‘‘(3) A parent of a person upon whom such a 1 chemical abortion has been performed or attempted 2 if such person had not attained 18 years of age at 3 the time of such abortion or if such person died as 4 the result of such abortion. 5 ‘‘(b) BARRING SUIT.—A plaintiff may not bring a 6 civil action under subsection (a) if a chemical abortion is 7 performed or attempted with respect to a pregnancy that 8 is the result of the plaintiff’s criminal conduct. 9 ‘‘(c) ATTORNEY’S FEE.—If a party described in para- 10 graph (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (a) is the prevailing 11 party in an action under this section, the court shall award 12 a reasonable attorney’s fee to such party. If a defendant 13 is the prevailing party in an action under this section, and 14 the court finds that such action was frivolous or brought 15 in bad faith, the court shall award a reasonable attorney’s 16 fee to the defendant.’’. 17 SEC. 3. PREEMPTION. 18 Nothing in this Act or the amendment made by this 19 Act shall be construed to preempt any provision of State 20 law to the extent that such State law establishes, imple- 21 ments, or continues in effect disclosure requirements re- 22 garding abortion or penalties for failure to comply with 23 such requirements that are more extensive than those pro- 24 vided under the amendment made by this Act. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 983 IH SEC. 4. SEVERABILITY. 1 If any provision of this Act, or any application there- 2 of, is found to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this 3 Act and any application thereof shall not be affected by 4 such finding. 5 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:53 Mar 07, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H983.IH H983 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS