Proposal would require care and reporting for infants born alive

A practitioner present at the birth would have to give the child the same level of care given to another child born at the same stage of development. It covers a health care practitioner present when a child is born alive and needs lifesaving treatment to survive. The duty applies whether birth follows natural or induced labor, cesarean section, or induced abortion.

A practitioner would have to ensure immediate transport and hospital admission after providing the required care when the child is born outside a hospital. These rules cover a child born alive who needs lifesaving treatment to survive. At a hospital, the practitioner would have to continue providing the required care. Transport and admission would be required immediately after the required care for a birth outside a hospital.

A practitioner or clinic employee who knows of a violation would have to report it immediately to state law enforcement. Intentional or reckless failure to provide the required care could lead to professional discipline and court cases. Reporting applies to a health care practitioner or an employee of a clinic where a pregnancy results in a child born alive. The court remedies concern practitioners who fail to provide the required care. A pregnant person or the person responsible for fertilization could seek actual and punitive damages; the latter could not recover damages if criminal conduct caused the pregnancy. A pregnant person, their representative if deceased, the person responsible for fertilization, a prosecutor, or the Attorney General could seek a court order to stop an intentional or reckless violation. The fertilizing person could not obtain that order if criminal conduct caused the pregnancy. A winning plaintiff would receive reasonable attorney fees. Courts would determine whether to protect the pregnant person's identity if they do not consent to disclosure; a private plaintiff in a related case would use a pseudonym, but the defendant and their lawyer could know the person's identity. The report would be due immediately when the person knows of the violation.