Congress Proposes Five-Year Prison Sentences for Doctors Failing to Care for Infants Born After Abortions

143 infants died after being born alive during abortion procedures over a 12-year period, per CDC death certificate data

1.1% of U.S. abortions — roughly 12,000 per year — occur at or after 21 weeks' gestation, the stage where live birth becomes possible

The 2002 Born-Alive Infants Protection Act made born-alive infants legal persons under federal law — but set no criminal penalties for failing to treat them

36 states have enacted laws specifically protecting infants born alive during abortions; 14 states and D.C. have not

H.R. 21 passed the House 217–204 in January 2025; the Senate companion bill S. 6 has stalled and cannot clear the 60-vote filibuster threshold