S 121
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 121
To impose admitting privilege requirements with respect to
physicians who perform abortions.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 25 (legislative day, January 5), 2011
Mr. VITTER introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
A BILL
To impose admitting privilege requirements with respect to
physicians who perform abortions.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Pregnant Women Health and Safety Act'.
SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT FOR PHYSICIANS RELATING TO THE PERFORMANCE OF
ABORTIONS.
Chapter 74 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at
the end the following:
`Sec. 1532. Prohibition on certain procedures
`(a) In General- A physician who, in or affecting interstate or foreign
commerce, knowingly performs an abortion and, in doing so, fails to
comply with subsection (b), shall be fined under this title or imprisoned
not more than 2 years, or both. This subsection shall not apply to an
abortion that is necessary to save the life of a mother whose life is
endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness, or physical injury,
including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising
from the pregnancy itself.
`(b) Requirements- A physician who performs an abortion shall--
`(1) have admitting privileges at a hospital to which the physician
can travel in one hour or less (determined on the basis of starting
at the principal medical office of the physician and traveling to
the hospital) and under the average conditions of travel for the physician;
and
`(2) at the time of the abortion, notify the patient involved of the
hospital location where the patient can receive follow-up care by
the physician if complications resulting from the abortion arise.
`(c) Definition- As used in this section, the term `physician' means
a doctor of medicine or osteopathy legally authorized to practice medicine
and surgery by the State in which the doctor performs such activity,
or any other individual legally authorized by the State to perform abortions:
Provided, however, That any individual who is not a physician
or not otherwise legally authorized by the State to perform abortions,
but who nevertheless directly performs an abortion, shall be subject
to the provisions of this section.
`(d) Limitation- A woman upon whom a procedure described in subsection
(a) is performed may not be prosecuted under this section, for a conspiracy
to violate this section, or for an offense under section 2, 3, or 4
of this title based on a violation of this section.'.
SEC. 3. REQUIREMENT OF ABORTION CLINICS.
(a) In General- Each abortion clinic that receives any Federal funds
or assistance shall--
(1) be licensed by the State in which it is located; and
(2) be in compliance with the requirements existing on the date of
enactment of this Act for ambulatory surgery centers under title XVIII
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1935 et seq.), except for the
requirement of a certificate of public need.
(b) Waiver- For purposes of complying with subsection (a)(2) with respect
to an abortion clinic, a State board of health may waive the application
of certain structural requirements (as determined appropriate by the
Secretary of Health and Human Services).
(c) Definition- In this section, the term `abortion clinic' means a
facility other than a hospital or an ambulatory surgery center, in which
25 or more first trimester abortions are performed during any 12-month
period.
END
