HLS 25RS-907 ORIGINAL
2025 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 575
BY REPRESENTATIVES VENTRELLA AND EMERSON
Prefiled pursuant to Article III, Section 2(A)(4)(b)(i) of the Constitution of Louisiana.
ABORTION: Provides relative to liability for the unlawful termination of a pregnancy
1 AN ACT
2To amend and reenact R.S. 9:2800.12, relative to abortion; to provide a cause of action; to
3 provide damages; to provide definitions; to provide exceptions; and to provide for
4 related matters.
5Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
6 Section 1. R.S. 9:2800.12 is hereby amended and reenacted to read as follows:
7 ยง2800.12. Liability for unlawful termination of a pregnancy
8 A.(1) Any person who performs, causes, aids, or abets an abortion, including
9 by manufacturing, administering, prescribing, dispensing, distributing, or selling an
10 abortion-inducing drug, is liable to the mother of the unborn child and those persons
11 defined in Paragraph (2) of this Section, regardless of whether the abortion resulted
12 in the death of the unborn child. for any damage occasioned or precipitated by the
13 abortion, which An action under this Section survives shall survive for a period of
14 three five years from the date of discovery of the damage with a peremptive period
15 of ten years from the date of the abortion.
16 (2) In addition to the mother of the unborn child, any of the following
17 persons may bring an action for damages under this Section:
18 (a) The natural or biological father of the unborn child except when the
19 father impregnated the mother of the unborn child through an act of rape, sexual
20 assault, or incest.
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1 (b) The maternal and paternal grandparents of the unborn child.
2 (c) The legal custodian of the mother of the unborn child if the mother was
3 a minor at the time the abortion was caused, performed, or attempted.
4 B. For purposes of this Section:
5 (1) "Abortion" means the deliberate termination of an intrauterine human
6 pregnancy after fertilization of a female ovum, by any person, including the pregnant
7 woman herself, with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a
8 dead unborn child shall have the same meaning as provided by R.S. 14:87.1.
9 (2) "Damage" includes all special and general damages which are
10 recoverable in an intentional tort, negligence, survival, or wrongful death action for
11 injuries suffered or damages occasioned by the unborn child or mother.
12 (3) "Unborn child" means the unborn offspring of human beings from the
13 moment of conception through pregnancy and until termination of the pregnancy.
14 C.(1) The signing of a consent form by the mother prior to the abortion does
15 not negate this cause of action, but rather reduces the recovery of damages to the
16 extent that the content of the consent form informed the mother of the risk of the
17 type of injuries or loss for which she is seeking to recover.
18 (2) The laws governing medical malpractice or limitations of liability thereof
19 provided in Title 40 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 are not applicable to
20 this Section.
21 D. A person entitled to bring an action under this Section may recover all of
22 the following damages:
23 (1) Statutory damages in the amount of not less than one hundred thousand
24 dollars if the defendant is not licensed to practice medicine in this state, is an entity
25 not licensed to dispense pharmaceutical drugs in this state, or is a foreign
26 corporation, limited liability company, partnership, or other business entity.
27 (2) Special and general damages upon proof of injuries including but not
28 limited to loss of consortium and emotional distress.
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1 (3) Exemplary damages upon proof that injuries were caused by a wanton
2 and reckless disregard for the safety of others through acts that cause or attempt to
3 cause an abortion as defined by R.S. 14:87.1, regardless of whether the defendant
4 was prosecuted for the actions.
5 (4) Exemplary damages when the woman upon whom the abortion was
6 performed, caused, or attempted was a minor, regardless of whether the defendant
7 knew or should have known of the minor's age.
8 (5) Court costs and attorney fees.
9 E. The courts shall have personal jurisdiction over any defendant sued under
10 this Section in accordance with R.S. 13:3201.
11 F. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, an action under this
12 Section may not be brought against the following:
13 (1) The woman upon whom an abortion was performed, caused, or
14 attempted.
15 (2) A healthcare provider licensed to practice medicine in this state for the
16 provision of healthcare that is not defined as abortion under R.S. 14:87.1.
17 (3) A pharmacist or pharmacy licensed in this state for actions related to
18 filling a prescription for a drug, medicine, or other substance prescribed for a bona
19 fide medical reason.
20 G. When requested, the court shall allow an individual bringing an action
21 under this Section to proceed using the initials or pseudonym of the mother of the
22 unborn child and may close any proceedings in the case or enter other protective
23 orders to preserve the privacy of the woman upon whom the abortion was performed,
24 attempted, or caused.
25 H. This Section shall be known and may be cited as the "Justice for Victims
26 of Abortion Drug Dealers Act".
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HB NO. 575
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HB 575 Original 2025 Regular Session Ventrella
Abstract: Provides relative to causes of action for an unlawful termination of a pregnancy.
Present law (R.S. 9:2800.12(A)) provides that any person who performs an abortion is liable
to the mother of the unborn child for any damages. The action survives a period of three
years from the date of discovery of the damage with a peremptive period of 10 years from
the date of the abortion.
Proposed law changes present law by increasing the prescriptive period from three years
from the date of discovery of the damage to five years.
Proposed law also expands present law by including any person who causes, aids, or abets
an abortion, including manufacturing, administering, prescribing, dispensing, distributing,
or selling an abortion-inducing drug. Those persons could be held liable for damages to the
following people:
(1)The natural or biological father of the unborn child except when the father
impregnated the mother of the unborn child through act of rape, sexual assault, or
incest.
(2)The maternal and paternal grandparents of the unborn child.
(3)The legal custodian of the mother of the unborn child if the mother was a minor at
the time the abortion was caused, performed, or attempted.
Present law (R.S. 9:2800.12(B)) defines "abortion", "damage", and "unborn child".
Proposed law retains the definition of "unborn child" and removes the definition of
"damage". It changes the definition of "abortion" to have the same meaning as provided by
R.S. 14:87.1.
Present law (R.S. 9:2800.12(C)(1)) provides that the signing of a consent form by the mother
prior to the abortion does not negate a cause of action but reduces the recovery of damages
to the extent that the content of the consent form informed the mother of the risk of the type
of injuries or loss for which she is seeking to recover. It also provides that medical
malpractice or limitations of liability provided in present law do not apply to present law.
Proposed law removes the provision that provides that the signing of a consent form by the
mother prior to the abortion does not negate a cause of action but reduces the recovery of
damages to the extent that the content of the consent form informed the mother of the risk
of the type of injuries or loss for which she is seeking to recover.
Proposed law provides that a person bringing an action under proposed law may recover
statutory damages, special damages, general damages, exemplary damages, court costs, and
attorney fees.
Proposed law provides that courts shall have personal jurisdiction over any defendant sued
under proposed law.
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Proposed law provides the following list of persons who are exempt from liability for the
provisions of proposed law:
(1)The woman upon whom an abortion was performed, caused, or attempted.
(2)A healthcare provider licensed to practice medicine in this state for the provision of
healthcare that is not defined as abortion under R.S. 14:87.1.
(3)A pharmacist or pharmacy licensed in this state for actions related to filling a
prescription for a drug, medicine, or other substance prescribed for a bona fide
medical reason.
Proposed law requires the court, if requested, to allow an individual bringing an action under
proposed law to use initials or a pseudonym of the mother of the unborn child. The court
may also close any proceedings in the case or enter other protective orders to preserve the
privacy of the woman upon whom the abortion was performed, attempted, or caused.
Proposed law provides that it may be known and cited as the "Justice for Victims of
Abortion Drug Dealers Act".
(Amends R.S. 9:2800.12)
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