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Federal

HOPE Act

Source: Congress.gov  ·  7,410 words in original text
The HOPE Act creates programs to support pregnant women and new mothers with prenatal care, counseling, and resources. The bill establishes requirements for abortion providers regarding informed consent and parental notification. It also creates a federal website to direct pregnant women to support services and limits federal funding to certain organizations.
Pregnant women and new mothers seeking prenatal and postnatal care; nonprofit organizations that provide pregnancy support services; abortion providers; physicians performing abortions on minors; Planned Parenthood Federation of America and its affiliates; parents of minors seeking abortions; the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
- The Secretary of Health and Human Services must award grants to eligible healthcare entities in rural, frontier, medically underserved areas and tribal jurisdictions to purchase equipment for at-home telehealth visits for prenatal and postnatal care (Sec. 101) - The Secretary must award grants to nonprofit organizations that support women in carrying pregnancies to term, with requirements that organizations provide information on developmental characteristics of unborn children and maintain strict privacy protections (Sec. 102) - Abortion providers must present a signed Informed Consent Authorization form to a woman at least 24 hours before performing an abortion, containing information about gestational age, medical risks, and fetal developmental characteristics (Sec. 103) - The Secretary must create a public website called life.gov within one year that provides pregnant women with comprehensive lists of federal, state, local and private resources, including information on alternatives to abortion and abortion risks (Sec. 104) - Physicians performing abortions on minors must provide at least 24 hours actual notice or 48 hours constructive notice to a parent before the procedure, with limited exceptions (Sec. 105)
If this bill becomes law, pregnant women will have access to new telehealth equipment and services through grants to underserved areas. Nonprofit pregnancy support organizations will receive federal funding if they meet specific requirements. A new federal website will compile pregnancy support resources by ZIP code. Abortion providers will be required to obtain signed informed consent forms with specific information at least 24 hours before procedures. Physicians will be required to notify parents before performing abortions on minors. Planned Parenthood and its affiliates will lose federal funding for one year unless they certify they will not perform abortions (with exceptions for rape, incest, and life-threatening medical conditions).
The bill defines "abortion" as using instruments, medicines, drugs, or devices to intentionally kill an unborn child or terminate pregnancy, excluding procedures after viability intended to produce live birth, removal of dead unborn children, or treatment of ectopic pregnancies (tubal pregnancies). The bill defines "unborn child" as an individual human organism beginning at fertilization until born alive. The bill defines "medically underserved area" as a health professional shortage area. The bill defines "frontier county" by reference to federal Medicare rules. The bill defines "prohibited entity" as any organization that performs abortions, induces abortions, refers for abortions, counsels in favor of abortions, or provides money to organizations that conduct these activities.
Not specified in bill text
Important: This plain English summary was generated by AI and is provided for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice. Always consult the official bill text on Congress.gov or a qualified attorney for legal matters.