Us Congress 2023-2024 Regular Session

Us Congress Senate Bill SB701 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	II
2	2	Calendar No. 26
3	3	118THCONGRESS
4	4	1
5	5	STSESSION S. 701
6	6	To protect a person’s ability to determine whether to continue or end a
7	7	pregnancy, and to protect a health care provider’s ability to provide
8	8	abortion services.
9	9	IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
10	10	MARCH8, 2023
11	11	Ms. B
12	12	ALDWIN(for herself, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. SCHUMER,
13	13	Ms. W
14	14	ARREN, Ms. CORTEZMASTO, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Ms. STABENOW,
15	15	Mrs. G
16	16	ILLIBRAND, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. BENNET, Mr. BOOKER, Mr.
17	17	B
18	18	ROWN, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. CARPER, Mr. COONS, Ms.
19	19	D
20	20	UCKWORTH, Mr. DURBIN, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. FETTERMAN, Ms. HAS-
21	21	SAN, Mr. HEINRICH, Mr. HICKENLOOPER, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. KAINE, Mr.
22	22	K
23	23	ELLY, Mr. KING, Mr. LUJA´N, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr.
24	24	M
25	25	ERKLEY, Mr. OSSOFF, Mr. PADILLA, Mr. PETERS, Mr. REED, Ms.
26	26	R
27	27	OSEN, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. SCHATZ, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Ms. SINEMA, Ms.
28	28	S
29	29	MITH, Mr. TESTER, Mr. VANHOLLEN, Mr. WARNER, Mr. WARNOCK,
30	30	Mr. W
31	31	ELCH, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, and Mr. WYDEN) introduced the fol-
32	32	lowing bill; which was read the first time
33	33	M
34	34	ARCH9, 2023
35	35	Read the second time and placed on the calendar
36	36	A BILL
37	37	To protect a person’s ability to determine whether to con-
38	38	tinue or end a pregnancy, and to protect a health care
39	39	provider’s ability to provide abortion services.
40	40	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
41	41	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2
42	42	•S 701 PCS
43	43	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-1
44	44	tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2
45	45	SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3
46	46	This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Women’s Health Pro-4
47	47	tection Act of 2023’’. 5
48	48	SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 6
49	49	The purposes of this Act are as follows: 7
50	50	(1) To permit people to seek and obtain abor-8
51	51	tion services, and to permit health care providers to 9
52	52	provide abortion services, without harmful or unwar-10
53	53	ranted limitations or requirements that single out 11
54	54	the provision of abortion services for restrictions 12
55	55	that are more burdensome than those restrictions 13
56	56	imposed on medically comparable procedures, do not 14
57	57	significantly advance reproductive health or the safe-15
58	58	ty of abortion services, or make abortion services 16
59	59	more difficult to access. 17
60	60	(2) To promote access to abortion services and 18
61	61	thereby protect women’s ability to participate equally 19
62	62	in the economic and social life of the United States. 20
63	63	(3) To protect people’s ability to make decisions 21
64	64	about their bodies, medical care, family, and life’s 22
65	65	course. 23
66	66	(4) To eliminate unwarranted burdens on com-24
67	67	merce and the right to travel. Abortion bans and re-25
68	68	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
69	69	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3
70	70	•S 701 PCS
71	71	strictions invariably affect commerce over which the 1
72	72	United States has jurisdiction. Health care providers 2
73	73	engage in economic and commercial activity when 3
74	74	they provide abortion services. Moreover, there is an 4
75	75	interstate market for abortion services and, in order 5
76	76	to provide such services, health care providers en-6
77	77	gage in interstate commerce to purchase medicine, 7
78	78	medical equipment, and other necessary goods and 8
79	79	services; to obtain and provide training; and to em-9
80	80	ploy and obtain commercial services from health care 10
81	81	personnel, many of whom themselves engage in 11
82	82	interstate commerce, including by traveling across 12
83	83	State lines. Congress has the authority to enact this 13
84	84	Act to protect access to abortion services pursuant 14
85	85	to— 15
86	86	(A) its powers under the commerce clause 16
87	87	of section 8 of article I of the Constitution of 17
88	88	the United States; 18
89	89	(B) its powers under section 5 of the Four-19
90	90	teenth Amendment to the Constitution of the 20
91	91	United States to enforce the provisions of sec-21
92	92	tion 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment; and 22
93	93	(C) its powers under the necessary and 23
94	94	proper clause of section 8 of Article I of the 24
95	95	Constitution of the United States. 25
96	96	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
97	97	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4
98	98	•S 701 PCS
99	99	SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 1
100	100	In this Act: 2
101	101	(1) A
102	102	BORTION SERVICES.—The term ‘‘abortion 3
103	103	services’’ means an abortion and any medical or 4
104	104	non-medical services related to and provided in con-5
105	105	junction with an abortion (whether or not provided 6
106	106	at the same time or on the same day as the abor-7
107	107	tion). 8
108	108	(2) G
109	109	OVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘government’’ 9
110	110	includes each branch, department, agency, instru-10
111	111	mentality, and official of the United States or a 11
112	112	State. 12
113	113	(3) H
114	114	EALTH CARE PROVIDER .—The term 13
115	115	‘‘health care provider’’ means any entity (including 14
116	116	any hospital, clinic, or pharmacy) or individual (in-15
117	117	cluding any physician, certified nurse-midwife, nurse 16
118	118	practitioner, pharmacist, or physician assistant) 17
119	119	that— 18
120	120	(A) is engaged or seeks to engage in the 19
121	121	delivery of health care services, including abor-20
122	122	tion services; and 21
123	123	(B) if required by law or regulation to be 22
124	124	licensed or certified to engage in the delivery of 23
125	125	such services— 24
126	126	(i) is so licensed or certified; or 25
127	127	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
128	128	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5
129	129	•S 701 PCS
130	130	(ii) would be so licensed or certified 1
131	131	but for their past, present, or potential 2
132	132	provision of abortion services protected by 3
133	133	section 4. 4
134	134	(4) M
135	135	EDICALLY COMPARABLE PROCEDURES .— 5
136	136	The term ‘‘medically comparable procedures’’ means 6
137	137	medical procedures that are similar in terms of 7
138	138	health and safety risks to the patient, complexity, or 8
139	139	the clinical setting that is indicated. 9
140	140	(5) P
141	141	REGNANCY.—The term ‘‘pregnancy’’ refers 10
142	142	to the period of the human reproductive process be-11
143	143	ginning with the implantation of a fertilized egg. 12
144	144	(6) S
145	145	TATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes the 13
146	146	District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 14
147	147	Rico, and each territory and possession of the 15
148	148	United States, and any subdivision of any of the 16
149	149	foregoing, including any unit of local government, 17
150	150	such as a county, city, town, village, or other general 18
151	151	purpose political subdivision of a State. 19
152	152	(7) V
153	153	IABILITY.—The term ‘‘viability’’ means 20
154	154	the point in a pregnancy at which, in the good-faith 21
155	155	medical judgment of the treating health care pro-22
156	156	vider, and based on the particular facts of the case 23
157	157	before the health care provider, there is a reasonable 24
158	158	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
159	159	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6
160	160	•S 701 PCS
161	161	likelihood of sustained fetal survival outside the 1
162	162	uterus with or without artificial support. 2
163	163	SEC. 4. PROTECTED ACTIVITIES AND SERVICES. 3
164	164	(a) G
165	165	ENERALRULES.— 4
166	166	(1) P
167	167	RE-VIABILITY.—A health care provider has 5
168	168	a right under this Act to provide abortion services, 6
169	169	and a patient has a corresponding right under this 7
170	170	Act to terminate a pregnancy prior to viability with-8
171	171	out being subject to any of the following limitations 9
172	172	or requirements: 10
173	173	(A) A prohibition on abortion prior to via-11
174	174	bility, including a prohibition or restriction on 12
175	175	a particular abortion procedure or method, or a 13
176	176	prohibition on providing or obtaining such abor-14
177	177	tions. 15
178	178	(B) A limitation on a health care pro-16
179	179	vider’s ability to prescribe or dispense drugs 17
180	180	that could be used for reproductive health pur-18
181	181	poses based on current evidence-based regimens 19
182	182	or the provider’s good-faith medical judgment, 20
183	183	or a limitation on a patient’s ability to receive 21
184	184	or use such drugs, other than a limitation gen-22
185	185	erally applicable to the prescription, dispensing, 23
186	186	or distribution of drugs. 24
187	187	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
188	188	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7
189	189	•S 701 PCS
190	190	(C) A limitation on a health care provider’s 1
191	191	ability to provide, or a patient’s ability to re-2
192	192	ceive, abortion services via telemedicine, other 3
193	193	than a limitation generally applicable to the 4
194	194	provision of medically comparable services via 5
195	195	telemedicine. 6
196	196	(D) A limitation or prohibition on a pa-7
197	197	tient’s ability to receive, or a provider’s ability 8
198	198	to provide, abortion services in a State based on 9
199	199	the State of residency of the patient, or a prohi-10
200	200	bition or limitation on the ability of any indi-11
201	201	vidual to assist or support a patient seeking 12
202	202	abortion. 13
203	203	(E) A requirement that a health care pro-14
204	204	vider perform specific tests or medical proce-15
205	205	dures in connection with the provision of abor-16
206	206	tion services (including prior to or subsequent 17
207	207	to the abortion), unless generally required for 18
208	208	the provision of medically comparable proce-19
209	209	dures. 20
210	210	(F) A requirement that a health care pro-21
211	211	vider offer or provide a patient seeking abortion 22
212	212	services medically inaccurate information. 23
213	213	(G) A limitation or requirement concerning 24
214	214	the physical plant, equipment, staffing, or hos-25
215	215	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
216	216	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8
217	217	•S 701 PCS
218	218	pital transfer arrangements of facilities where 1
219	219	abortion services are provided, or the creden-2
220	220	tials or hospital privileges or status of personnel 3
221	221	at such facilities, that is not imposed on facili-4
222	222	ties or the personnel of facilities where medi-5
223	223	cally comparable procedures are performed. 6
224	224	(H) A requirement that, prior to obtaining 7
225	225	an abortion, a patient make one or more medi-8
226	226	cally unnecessary in-person visits to the pro-9
227	227	vider of abortion services or to any individual or 10
228	228	entity that does not provide abortion services. 11
229	229	(I) A limitation on a health care provider’s 12
230	230	ability to provide immediate abortion services 13
231	231	when that health care provider believes, based 14
232	232	on the good-faith medical judgment of the pro-15
233	233	vider, that delay would pose a risk to the pa-16
234	234	tient’s life or health. 17
235	235	(J) A requirement that a patient seeking 18
236	236	abortion services at any point or points in time 19
237	237	prior to viability disclose the patient’s reason or 20
238	238	reasons for seeking abortion services, or a limi-21
239	239	tation on providing or obtaining abortion serv-22
240	240	ices at any point or points in time prior to via-23
241	241	bility based on any actual, perceived, or poten-24
242	242	tial reason or reasons of the patient for obtain-25
243	243	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
244	244	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9
245	245	•S 701 PCS
246	246	ing abortion services, regardless of whether the 1
247	247	limitation is based on a health care provider’s 2
248	248	actual or constructive knowledge of such reason 3
249	249	or reasons. 4
250	250	(2) P
251	251	OST-VIABILITY.— 5
252	252	(A) I
253	253	N GENERAL.—A health care provider 6
254	254	has a right under this Act to provide abortion 7
255	255	services and a patient has a corresponding right 8
256	256	under this Act to terminate a pregnancy after 9
257	257	viability when, in the good-faith medical judge-10
258	258	ment of the treating health care provider, it is 11
259	259	necessary to protect the life or health of the pa-12
260	260	tient. This subparagraph shall not otherwise 13
261	261	apply after viability. 14
262	262	(B) A
263	263	DDITIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES .—A 15
264	264	State may provide additional circumstances 16
265	265	under which post viability abortions are per-17
266	266	mitted under this paragraph. 18
267	267	(C) L
268	268	IMITATION.—In the case where a ter-19
269	269	mination of a pregnancy after viability, in the 20
270	270	good-faith medical judgement of the treating 21
271	271	health care provider, is necessary to protect the 22
272	272	life or health of the patient, a State shall not 23
273	273	impose any of the limitations or requirements 24
274	274	described in paragraph (1) 25
275	275	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
276	276	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10
277	277	•S 701 PCS
278	278	(b) OTHERLIMITATIONS ORREQUIREMENTS.—The 1
279	279	rights described in subsection (a) shall not be limited or 2
280	280	otherwise infringed through any other limitation or re-3
281	281	quirement that— 4
282	282	(1) expressly, effectively, implicitly, or as imple-5
283	283	mented, singles out abortion, the provision of abor-6
284	284	tion services, individuals who seek abortion services 7
285	285	or who provide assistance and support to those seek-8
286	286	ing abortion services, health care providers who pro-9
287	287	vide abortion services, or facilities in which abortion 10
288	288	services are provided; and 11
289	289	(2) impedes access to abortion services. 12
290	290	(c) F
291	291	ACTORS FORCONSIDERATION.—A court may 13
292	292	consider the following factors, among others, in deter-14
293	293	mining whether a limitation or requirement impedes ac-15
294	294	cess to abortion services for purposes of subsection (b)(2): 16
295	295	(1) Whether the limitation or requirement, in a 17
296	296	provider’s good-faith medical judgment, interferes 18
297	297	with a health care provider’s ability to provide care 19
298	298	and render services, or poses a risk to the patient’s 20
299	299	health or safety. 21
300	300	(2) Whether the limitation or requirement is 22
301	301	reasonably likely to delay or deter a patient in ac-23
302	302	cessing abortion services. 24
303	303	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
304	304	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11
305	305	•S 701 PCS
306	306	(3) Whether the limitation or requirement is 1
307	307	reasonably likely to directly or indirectly increase the 2
308	308	cost of providing abortion services or the cost for ob-3
309	309	taining abortion services such as costs associated 4
310	310	with travel, childcare, or time off work. 5
311	311	(4) Whether the limitation or requirement is 6
312	312	reasonably likely to have the effect of necessitating 7
313	313	patient travel that would not otherwise have been re-8
314	314	quired, including by making it necessary for a pa-9
315	315	tient to travel out of State to obtain services. 10
316	316	(5) Whether the limitation or requirement is 11
317	317	reasonably likely to result in a decrease in the avail-12
318	318	ability of abortion services in a given State or geo-13
319	319	graphic region. 14
320	320	(6) Whether the limitation or requirement im-15
321	321	poses penalties that are not imposed on other health 16
322	322	care providers for comparable conduct or failure to 17
323	323	act, or that are more severe than penalties imposed 18
324	324	on other health care providers for comparable con-19
325	325	duct or failure to act. 20
326	326	(7) The cumulative impact of the limitation or 21
327	327	requirement combined with other limitations or re-22
328	328	quirements. 23
329	329	(d) E
330	330	XCEPTION.—To defend against a claim that a 24
331	331	limitation or requirement violates a health care provider’s 25
332	332	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
333	333	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 12
334	334	•S 701 PCS
335	335	or patient’s rights under subsection (b) a party must es-1
336	336	tablish, by clear and convincing evidence, that the limita-2
337	337	tion or requirement is essential to significantly advance 3
338	338	the safety of abortion services or the health of the patients 4
339	339	and that the safety or health objective cannot be accom-5
340	340	plished by a different means that does not interfere with 6
341	341	the right protected under subsection (b)). 7
342	342	SEC. 5. PROTECTION OF THE RIGHT TO TRAVEL. 8
343	343	A person has a fundamental right under the Con-9
344	344	stitution of the United States and this Act to travel to 10
345	345	a State other than the person’s State of residence, includ-11
346	346	ing to obtain reproductive health services such as prenatal, 12
347	347	childbirth, fertility, and abortion services, and a person 13
348	348	has a right under this Act to assist another person to ob-14
349	349	tain such services or otherwise exercise the right described 15
350	350	in this section. 16
351	351	SEC. 6. APPLICABILITY AND PREEMPTION. 17
352	352	(a) I
353	353	NGENERAL.— 18
354	354	(1) S
355	355	UPERSEDING INCONSISTENT LAWS .—Ex-19
356	356	cept as provided under subsection (b), this Act shall 20
357	357	supersede any inconsistent Federal or State law, and 21
358	358	the implementation of such law, whether statutory, 22
359	359	common law, or otherwise, and whether adopted 23
360	360	prior to or after the date of enactment of this Act. 24
361	361	A Federal or State government official shall not ad-25
362	362	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
363	363	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 13
364	364	•S 701 PCS
365	365	minister, implement, or enforce any law, rule, regu-1
366	366	lation, standard, or other provision having the force 2
367	367	and effect of law that conflicts with any provision of 3
368	368	this Act, notwithstanding any other provision of 4
369	369	Federal law, including the Religious Freedom Res-5
370	370	toration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 2000bb et seq.). 6
371	371	(2) L
372	372	AWS AFTER DATE OF ENACTMENT .—Fed-7
373	373	eral law enacted after the date of the enactment of 8
374	374	this Act shall be subject to this Act unless such law 9
375	375	explicitly excludes such application by reference to 10
376	376	this Act. 11
377	377	(b) L
378	378	IMITATIONS.—The provisions of this Act shall 12
379	379	not supersede or apply to— 13
380	380	(1) laws regulating physical access to clinic en-14
381	381	trances; 15
382	382	(2) laws regulating insurance or medical assist-16
383	383	ance coverage of abortion services; 17
384	384	(3) the procedure described in section 18
385	385	1531(b)(1) of title 18, United States Code; or 19
386	386	(4) generally applicable State contract law. 20
387	387	(c) P
388	388	REEMPTIONDEFENSE.—In any legal or admin-21
389	389	istrative action against a person or entity who has exer-22
390	390	cised or attempted to exercise a right protected by section 23
391	391	4 or section 5 or against any person or entity who has 24
392	392	taken any step to assist any such person or entity in exer-25
393	393	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
394	394	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 14
395	395	•S 701 PCS
396	396	cising such right, this Act shall also apply to, and may 1
397	397	be raised as a defense by, such person or entity, in addi-2
398	398	tion to the remedies specified in section 8. 3
399	399	SEC. 7. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION. 4
400	400	(a) L
401	401	IBERALCONSTRUCTION BY COURTS.—In any 5
402	402	action before a court under this Act, the court shall lib-6
403	403	erally construe the provisions of this Act to effectuate the 7
404	404	purposes of the Act. 8
405	405	(b) P
406	406	ROTECTION OFLIFE ANDHEALTH.—Nothing 9
407	407	in this Act shall be construed to authorize any government 10
408	408	official to interfere with, diminish, or negatively affect a 11
409	409	person’s ability to obtain or provide abortion services prior 12
410	410	to viability or after viability when, in the good-faith med-13
411	411	ical judgment of the treating health care provider, continu-14
412	412	ation of the pregnancy would pose a risk to the pregnant 15
413	413	patient’s life or health. 16
414	414	(c) G
415	415	OVERNMENTOFFICIALS.—Any person who, by 17
416	416	operation of a provision of Federal or State law, is per-18
417	417	mitted to implement or enforce a limitation or requirement 19
418	418	that violates section 4 or 5 shall be considered a govern-20
419	419	ment official for purposes of this Act. 21
420	420	SEC. 8. ENFORCEMENT. 22
421	421	(a) A
422	422	TTORNEYGENERAL.—The Attorney General 23
423	423	may commence a civil action on behalf of the United 24
424	424	States in any district court of the United States against 25
425	425	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
426	426	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 15
427	427	•S 701 PCS
428	428	any State that violates, or against any government official 1
429	429	(including a person described in section 7(c)) who imple-2
430	430	ments or enforces a limitation or requirement that vio-3
431	431	lates, section 4 or 5. The court shall declare unlawful the 4
432	432	limitation or requirement if it is determined to be in viola-5
433	433	tion of this Act. 6
434	434	(b) P
435	435	RIVATERIGHT OFACTION.— 7
436	436	(1) I
437	437	N GENERAL.—Any individual or entity ad-8
438	438	versely affected by an alleged violation of this Act, 9
439	439	including any person or health care provider, may 10
440	440	commence a civil action against any government offi-11
441	441	cial (including a person described in section 7(c)) 12
442	442	that implements or enforces a limitation or require-13
443	443	ment that violates, section 4 or 5. The court shall 14
444	444	declare unlawful the limitation or requirement if it 15
445	445	is in violation of this Act. 16
446	446	(2) H
447	447	EALTH CARE PROVIDER .—A health care 17
448	448	provider may commence an action for relief on its 18
449	449	own behalf, on behalf of the provider’s staff, and on 19
450	450	behalf of the provider’s patients who are or may be 20
451	451	adversely affected by an alleged violation of this Act. 21
452	452	(c) P
453	453	RE-ENFORCEMENT CHALLENGES.—A suit under 22
454	454	subsection (a) or (b) may be brought to prevent enforce-23
455	455	ment or implementation by any government of a State lim-24
456	456	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
457	457	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 16
458	458	•S 701 PCS
459	459	itation or requirement that is inconsistent with section 4 1
460	460	or 5. 2
461	461	(d) D
462	462	ECLARATORY AND EQUITABLERELIEF.—In 3
463	463	any action under this section, the court may award appro-4
464	464	priate declaratory and equitable relief, including tem-5
465	465	porary, preliminary, or permanent injunctive relief. 6
466	466	(e) C
467	467	OSTS.—In any action under this section, the 7
468	468	court shall award costs of litigation, as well as reasonable 8
469	469	attorney’s fees, to any prevailing plaintiff. A plaintiff shall 9
470	470	not be liable to a defendant for costs or attorney’s fees 10
471	471	in any non-frivolous action under this section. 11
472	472	(f) J
473	473	URISDICTION.—The district courts of the United 12
474	474	States shall have jurisdiction over proceedings under this 13
475	475	Act and shall exercise the same without regard to whether 14
476	476	the party aggrieved shall have exhausted any administra-15
477	477	tive or other remedies that may be provided for by law. 16
478	478	(g) A
479	479	BROGATION OF STATEIMMUNITY.—Neither a 17
480	480	State that enforces or maintains, nor a government official 18
481	481	(including a person described in section 7(c)) who is per-19
482	482	mitted to implement or enforce any limitation or require-20
483	483	ment that violates section 4 or 5 shall be immune under 21
484	484	the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United 22
485	485	States, the Eleventh Amendment to the Constitution of 23
486	486	the United States, or any other source of law, from an 24
487	487	action in a Federal or State court of competent jurisdic-25
488	488	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
489	489	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 17
490	490	•S 701 PCS
491	491	tion challenging that limitation or requirement, unless 1
492	492	such immunity is required by clearly established Federal 2
493	493	law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United 3
494	494	States. 4
495	495	SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE. 5
496	496	This Act shall take effect upon the date of enactment 6
497	497	of this Act. 7
498	498	SEC. 10. SEVERABILITY. 8
499	499	If any provision of this Act, or the application of such 9
500	500	provision to any person, entity, government, or cir-10
501	501	cumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder 11
502	502	of this Act, or the application of such provision to all other 12
503	503	persons, entities, governments, or circumstances, shall not 13
504	504	be affected thereby. 14
505	505	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
506	506	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB Calendar No.
507	507	26
508	508	118
509	509	TH
510	510	CONGRESS
511	511	1
512	512	ST
513	513	S
514	514	ESSION
515	515
516	516	S. 701 A BILL
517	517	To protect a person’s ability to determine whether
518	518	to continue or end a pregnancy, and to protect
519	519	a health care provider’s ability to provide abor-
520	520	tion services.
521	521	M
522	522	ARCH
523	523	9, 2023
524	524	Read the second time and placed on the calendar
525	525	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:29 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6651 Sfmt 6651 E:\BILLS\S701.PCS S701
526	526	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB