Skip to main content
HR 356 109th Congress House

Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2005

Official title: To ensure that women seeking an abortion are fully informed regarding the pain experienced by their unborn child.

Introduced: February 1, 2006 Introduced by: Smith, Christopher H. Republican · New Jersey See on congress.gov
Health AbortionAnestheticsCivil actions and liabilityCommunication in medicine
More subjectsShow fewer subjects
DamagesElectronic government informationEmergency ManagementEmergency medicineFederal preemptionFetusFines (Penalties)Government Operations and PoliticsGovernment paperworkGovernment publicationsHealth educationInformed consent (Medical law)InternetLawLicenses
This bill died when the 109th Congress ended
It never became law before the 109th Congress (2005–2006) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Feb 25, 2005
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
Jan 25, 2005
Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Jan 25, 2005
Introduced in House
 Ask about this bill AI · grounded in the bill text

Have a question about what this bill does? Ask in plain English; the answer is drawn from the bill's actual text and official record, and it'll tell you when something isn't in the text rather than guess.

AI answers can be imperfect; always confirm against the full bill text.

 Latest action February 25, 2005

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require an abortion provider, before beginning any abortion of a pain-capable unborn child (defined as an unborn child who has reached a probable stage of development of 20 weeks after fertilization), to: (1) make a specified statement to the pregnant woman that Congress has determined that there is substantial evidence that the process will cause the unborn child pain, and that the mother has the option of having pain-reducing drugs administered directly to the child; (2) provide to the woman an Unborn Child Pain Awareness Brochure (unless she waives receipt) or information on accessing such brochure on the Internet; (3) provide to the woman an Unborn Child Pain Awareness Decision Form; and (4) obtain on the form the woman's signature and her explicit request for or refusal of the administration of drugs to the child.

Creates an exception for certified medical emergencies.

Establishes penalties for willfully failing to comply with this Act, including civil penalties, medical license suspension, or both. Authorizes: (1) specified officials to bring suit in Federal court; and (2) private rights of action by a parent or guardian of a woman who is an unemancipated minor.

Requires each State and State medical licensing authority to promulgate procedures for the revocation or suspension of a provider's license upon a court finding that the provider has violated this Act. Subjects a State that fails to implement such procedures to loss of Medicaid funding.

 Related & companion bills 2
 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 356: Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2005. 109th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/109-HR-356/
MLA
"H.R. 356: Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2005." 109th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/109-HR-356/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 356, 109th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/109-HR-356/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 356: Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2005](https://openamerica.io/bill/109-HR-356/)
Report a problem