Connecticut 2019 Regular Session

Connecticut House Bill HB07070 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

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7		-	General Assembly ~~Substitute~~ Bill No. 7070
	5	+	General Assembly Raised Bill No. 7070
8	6		January Session, 2019
	7	+	LCO No. 3577
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	9	+
	10	+	Referred to Committee on PUBLIC HEALTH
	11	+
	12	+
	13	+	Introduced by:
	14	+	(PH)
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14	19		AN ACT CONCERNING DE CEPTIVE ADVERTISING PRACTICE S OF
15	20		LIMITED SERVICES PREGNANCY CENTERS.
16	21		Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
17	22		Assembly convened:
18	23
19	24		Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) As used in this section and 1
20		-	sections 2 and 3 of this act: 2
21		-	(1) "Abortion" means the termination of a pregnancy for purposes 3
22		-	other than producing a live birth. "Abortion" includes, but is not 4
23		-	limited to, a termination of a pregnancy using pharmacological agents; 5
24		-	(2) "Client" means an individual who is inquiring about or seeking 6
25		-	services at a pregnancy services center; 7
26		-	(3) "Clinical laboratory services" means the microbiological, 8
27		-	serological, chemical, hematological, biophysical, cytological or 9
28		-	pathological examination of materials derived from the human body 10
29		-	for the purpose of obtaining information for the diagnosis, prevention 11
30		-	or treatment of disease or the assessment of a health condition; 12
31		-	(4) "Emergency contraception" means one or more prescription 13
32		-	drugs (A) used separately or in combination for the purpose of 14
33		-	preventing pregnancy, (B) administered to or self-administered by a 15
34		-	patient within a medically recommended amount of time after sexual 16
35		-	intercourse, (C) dispensed for such purpose in accordance with 17 Substitute Bill No. 7070
	25	+	sections 2 and 3 of this act, the following terms shall have the 2
	26	+	following meanings: 3
	27	+	(1) "Abortion" means the termination of a pregnancy for purposes 4
	28	+	other than producing a live birth. "Abortion" includes, but is not 5
	29	+	limited to, a termination of a pregnancy using pharmacological agents; 6
	30	+	(2) "Client" means an individual who is inquiring about or seeking 7
	31	+	services at a pregnancy services center; 8
	32	+	(3) "Clinical laboratory services" means the microbiological, 9
	33	+	serological, chemical, hematological, biophysical, cytological, or 10
	34	+	pathological examination of materials derived from the human body 11
	35	+	for the purpose of obtaining information for the diagnosis, prevention, 12
	36	+	or treatment of disease or the assessment of a health condition; 13
	37	+	Raised Bill No. 7070
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42		-	professional standards of practice, and (D) determined by the United 18
43		-	States Food and Drug Administration to be safe for such purpose; 19
44		-	(5) "Health information" means any oral or written information in 20
45		-	any form or medium that relates to health insurance or the past, 21
46		-	present or future physical or mental health or condition of a client; 22
47		-	(6) "Licensed health care provider" means a person licensed under 23
48		-	the provisions of federal or state law to provide health care or other 24
49		-	medical services; 25
50		-	(7) "Limited services pregnancy center" means a pregnancy services 26
51		-	center that does not provide referrals to clients for abortions or 27
52		-	emergency contraception; 28
53		-	(8) "Pregnancy-related service" means any medical or health 29
54		-	counseling service related to pregnancy or pregnancy prevention, 30
55		-	including, but not limited to, contraception and contraceptive 31
56		-	counseling, pregnancy testing, pregnancy diagnosis, pregnancy 32
57		-	options counseling, obstetric ultrasound, obstetric sonogram and 33
58		-	prenatal care; 34
59		-	(9) "Pregnancy services center" means a facility, including a mobile 35
60		-	facility, the primary purpose of which is to provide services to clients 36
61		-	who are or may be pregnant and that either (A) offers obstetric 37
62		-	ultrasounds, obstetric sonograms, pregnancy testing or diagnosis or 38
63		-	prenatal care to pregnant clients, or (B) has the appearance of a 39
64		-	medical facility by virtue of having two or more of the following 40
65		-	factors present: (i) Staff or volunteers who wear medical attire and 41
66		-	uniforms; (ii) one or more examination tables; (iii) a private or 42
67		-	semiprivate room or area containing medical supplies or medical 43
68		-	instruments; (iv) staff or volunteers who collect health information 44
69		-	from clients; or (v) the facility is located on the same premises as a 45
70		-	licensed health care facility or licensed health care provider or shares 46
71		-	facility space with a licensed health care provider; 47
72		-	(10) "Premises" means land and improvements or appurtenances or 48 Substitute Bill No. 7070
	41	+	LCO No. 3577 2 of 4
	42	+
	43	+	(4) "Emergency contraception" means one or more prescription 14
	44	+	drugs (A) used separately or in combination for the purpose of 15
	45	+	preventing pregnancy, (B) administered to or self-administered by a 16
	46	+	patient within a medically recommended amount of time after sexual 17
	47	+	intercourse, (C) dispensed for such purpose in accordance with 18
	48	+	professional standards of practice, and (D) determined by the United 19
	49	+	States Food and Drug Administration to be safe for such purpose; 20
	50	+	(5) "Health information" means any oral or written information in 21
	51	+	any form or medium that relates to health insurance or the past, 22
	52	+	present or future physical or mental health or condition of a client; 23
	53	+	(6) "Licensed health care provider" means a person licensed under 24
	54	+	the provisions of federal or state law to provide health care or other 25
	55	+	medical services; 26
	56	+	(7) "Limited services pregnancy center" means a pregnancy services 27
	57	+	center that does not provide referrals to clients for abortions or 28
	58	+	emergency contraception; 29
	59	+	(8) "Pregnancy-related service" means any medical or health 30
	60	+	counseling service related to pregnancy or pregnancy prevention, 31
	61	+	including, but not limited to, contraception and contraceptive 32
	62	+	counseling, pregnancy testing, pregnancy diagnosis, pregnancy 33
	63	+	options counseling, obstetric ultrasound, obstetric sonogram and 34
	64	+	prenatal care; 35
	65	+	(9) "Pregnancy services center" means a facility, including a mobile 36
	66	+	facility, the primary purpose of which is to provide services to clients 37
	67	+	who are or may be pregnant and that either (A) offers obstetric 38
	68	+	ultrasounds, obstetric sonograms, pregnancy testing or diagnosis, or 39
	69	+	prenatal care to pregnant clients, or (B) has the appearance of a 40
	70	+	medical facility by virtue of having two or more of the following 41
	71	+	factors present: (i) Staff or volunteers who wear medical attire and 42
	72	+	uniforms; (ii) one or more examination tables; (iii) a private or 43
	73	+	semi-private room or area containing medical supplies or medical 44
	74	+	Raised Bill No. 7070
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79		-	any part thereof; and 49
80		-	(11) "Prenatal care" means services consisting of a physical 50
81		-	examination, pelvic examination or clinical laboratory services 51
82		-	provided to a client during pregnancy. 52
83		-	Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) No limited services pregnancy 53
84		-	center shall make or disseminate, or cause to be made or disseminated, 54
85		-	in any newspaper or other publication, through any advertising 55
86		-	device, or in any other manner, including, but not limited to, through 56
87		-	use of the Internet, any statement concerning any pregnancy-related 57
88		-	service or the provision of any pregnancy-related service (1) that is 58
89		-	explicitly or implicitly false, misleading or deceptive or that a limited 59
90		-	services pregnancy center reasonably should know to be explicitly or 60
91		-	implicitly false, misleading or deceptive, or (2) with the intent not to 61
92		-	perform such pregnancy-related service as explicitly or implicitly 62
	78	+	LCO No. 3577 3 of 4
	79	+
	80	+	instruments; (iv) staff or volunteers who collect health information 45
	81	+	from clients; or (v) the facility is located on the same premises as a 46
	82	+	licensed health care facility or licensed health care provider or shares 47
	83	+	facility space with a licensed health care provider; 48
	84	+	(10) "Premises" means land and improvements or appurtenances or 49
	85	+	any part thereof; and 50
	86	+	(11) "Prenatal care" means services consisting of a physical 51
	87	+	examination, pelvic examination or clinical laboratory services 52
	88	+	provided to a client during pregnancy. 53
	89	+	Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) No limited services pregnancy 54
	90	+	center shall make or disseminate or cause to be made or disseminated 55
	91	+	in any newspaper or other publication, through any advertising 56
	92	+	device, or in any other manner, including, but not limited to, through 57
	93	+	use of the Internet, any statement concerning any pregnancy-related 58
	94	+	service or the provision of any pregnancy-related service (1) that is 59
	95	+	false, misleading or deceptive or that a limited services pregnancy 60
	96	+	center reasonably should know to be false, misleading or deceptive, or 61
	97	+	(2) with the intent not to perform such pregnancy-related service as 62
93	98		advertised. 63
94	99		Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) (a) The Attorney General may 64
95	100		apply to any court of competent jurisdiction for injunctive relief to 65
96	101		compel compliance with the provisions of section 2 of this act and 66
97		-	correct the effects of the false, misleading or deceptive advertising, 67
98		-	provided the Attorney General gives written notice to the limited 68
99		-	services pregnancy center in accordance with subsection (b) of this 69
100		-	section. Any injunctive relief ordered by the court under this section 70
101		-	may require a limited services pregnancy center to take whatever 71
102		-	remedial steps the court deems necessary to correct the effects of the 72
103		-	false, misleading or deceptive advertising and to prevent further harm 73
104		-	from occurring. Such steps may include requiring the limited service 74
105		-	pregnancy center to: 75
106		-	(1) Pay for and disseminate appropriate corrective advertising in the 76
107		-	same form and using the same advertising device as used in the false, 77
108		-	misleading, or deceptive advertising; 78
109		-	(2) Post a remedial notice that corrects the effects of the false, 79 Substitute Bill No. 7070
	102	+	correct the effects of the false, misleading, or deceptive advertising. 67
	103	+	Any injunctive relief ordered by the court under this section may 68
	104	+	require a limited services pregnancy center to take whatever remedial 69
	105	+	steps the court deems necessary to correct the effects of the false, 70
	106	+	misleading or deceptive advertising and to prevent further harm from 71
	107	+	occurring. Such steps may include requiring the limited service 72
	108	+	pregnancy center to: 73
	109	+	(1) Pay for and disseminate appropriate corrective advertising in the 74
	110	+	same form and using the same advertising device as used in the false, 75
	111	+	Raised Bill No. 7070
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116		-	misleading or deceptive advertising for clients entering the facility that 80
117		-	may have seen the original false, misleading or deceptive 81
118		-	advertisements, but have not seen any subsequent court-ordered 82
119		-	corrective advertisements required under subdivision (1) of this 83
120		-	subsection; or 84
121		-	(3) Provide such other relief as the court deems necessary to remedy 85
122		-	the adverse effects of the false, misleading or deceptive advertising on 86
123		-	any clients seeking pregnancy-related services. 87
124		-	(b) Prior to commencing an action pursuant to subsection (a) of this 88
125		-	section, the Attorney General shall give written notice to the limited 89
126		-	services pregnancy center of the violation of section 2 of this act and 90
127		-	allow the limited services pregnancy center to cure such violation not 91
128		-	later than ten days after receipt of the written notice. The Attorney 92
129		-	General may file an action pursuant to subsection (a) of this section 93
130		-	after such ten-day period if the limited services pregnancy center does 94
131		-	not respond to the written notice or refuses to cure the violation of 95
132		-	section 2 of this act. 96
133		-	(c) Upon a finding by the court that a limited services pregnancy 97
134		-	center has violated any provision of section 2 of this act, the state shall 98
135		-	be entitled to recover (1) civil penalties of not less than fifty dollars and 99
136		-	not more than five hundred dollars per violation, and (2) reasonable 100
137		-	attorney's fees and costs. 101
138		-	(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed as a limitation upon 102
139		-	the power or authority of the state or any political subdivision thereof 103
140		-	to seek any administrative, legal or equitable relief permitted by law. 104
	115	+	LCO No. 3577 4 of 4
	116	+
	117	+	misleading, or deceptive advertising; 76
	118	+	(2) Post a remedial notice that corrects the effects of the false, 77
	119	+	misleading or deceptive advertising for clients entering the facility that 78
	120	+	may have seen the original false, mis leading or deceptive 79
	121	+	advertisements, but not any subsequent court-ordered corrective 80
	122	+	advertisements required under subdivision (1) of this subsection; or 81
	123	+	(3) Provide such other relief as the court deems necessary to remedy 82
	124	+	the adverse effects of the false, misleading, or deceptive advertising on 83
	125	+	any clients seeking pregnancy-related services. 84
	126	+	(b) Upon a finding by the court that a limited services pregnancy 85
	127	+	center has violated any provision of section 2 of this act, the state shall 86
	128	+	be entitled to recover (1) civil penalties of not less than fifty dollars and 87
	129	+	not more than five hundred dollars per violation, and (2) reasonable 88
	130	+	attorney's fees and costs. 89
	131	+	(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed as a limitation upon 90
	132	+	the power or authority of the state or any political subdivision thereof 91
	133	+	to seek any administrative, legal or equitable relief permitted by law. 92
141	134		This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
142	135		sections:
143	136
144	137		Section 1 July 1, 2019 New section
145	138		Sec. 2 July 1, 2019 New section
146		-	Sec. 3 July 1, 2019 New section ~~Substitute Bill No. 7070~~
	139	+	Sec. 3 July 1, 2019 New section
147	140
	141	+	Statement of Purpose:
	142	+	To prohibit deceptive advertising practices by limited services
	143	+	pregnancy centers.
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153		-
154		-	Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
155		-	In Section 1, the phrase "the following terms shall have the following
156		-	meanings" was deleted to eliminate redundant language.
157		-
158		-	PH Joint Favorable Subst.
	145	+	[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline,
	146	+	except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is
	147	+	not underlined.]
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