Sponsors (14)
The bill strengthens legal protections and nondiscrimination for people with Down syndrome but does so by prohibiting abortions based on a Down syndrome diagnosis and imposing criminal, civil, and reporting requirements that significantly increase legal risk, reduce provider autonomy, and may limit reproductive-health access.
People with Down syndrome and their families are protected because the bill prohibits abortions performed because of a Down syndrome diagnosis.
The bill reinforces federal nondiscrimination protections in medical care and creates an accountability mechanism (including potential loss of federal funding under Section 504) for violators.
The bill creates civil and criminal enforcement tools—qualified plaintiffs (e.g., pregnant women, fathers, maternal grandparents, Attorney General) can seek monetary and injunctive relief and attorney’s fees against violators.
Pregnant people may lose access to abortion when a fetus is diagnosed with Down syndrome because the bill prohibits abortions for that reason.
Providers, organizations, and those who assist patients could face criminal liability, civil suits, and loss of federal funding—threatening availability of reproductive-health services and constraining clinical decision-making.
Medical and mental-health professionals are required to report suspected violations and face penalties (including up to 1 year imprisonment) for failure to report, which can undermine confidentiality and deter people from seeking care or candid counseling.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Introduced January 23, 2025 by Steve Daines · Last progress January 23, 2025
Creates a federal ban on providing, arranging, paying for, or transporting a woman for an abortion if the decision is based on a belief or test that the fetus has Down syndrome. The measure makes such acts a federal crime with fines and up to five years in prison, creates civil causes of action (including money damages and injunctive relief) for specified plaintiffs, requires medical and mental health providers to report suspected violations, and treats violations as discrimination under federal disability law for purposes of federal funding. The bill includes findings about disability nondiscrimination and recent Supreme Court precedent, adds the new prohibition to the federal criminal code, and contains a severability clause. It also directs courts to hear cases quickly and to protect the privacy of pregnant women involved in enforcement actions.