Forced Abortion Prevention and Accountability Act
SB2955, titled the Forced Abortion Prevention and Accountability Act, would create a new federal criminal offense for knowingly and intentionally administering an abortion-inducing drug to a pregnant woman without her informed consent when the drug has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce. The bill covers attempts and conspiracies as well, and it sets a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison, fines, or both. If the non-consensual administration results in serious bodily injury or death, the bill adds an additional potential prison term of up to 25 years.
The measure also creates a federal civil cause of action for a woman who was given an abortion-inducing drug in violation of the bill. In such a lawsuit, she could seek money damages for physical and psychological injuries, treble damages, punitive damages, and attorney’s fees. The bill defines key terms including “abortion,” “abortion-inducing drug,” “informed consent,” and “unborn child,” and it specifically names mifepristone and misoprostol as examples of covered drugs. It also broadens the chapter heading in title 18 from “Partial-birth abortions” to “Abortions.”
If enacted, SB2955 would amend title 18 of the U.S. Code by adding a new federal offense in chapter 74 and by revising the chapter heading and table of sections. It would extend federal criminal law into conduct involving abortion-inducing drugs when interstate or foreign commerce is implicated, and it would create a parallel federal civil remedy for affected women. The bill would directly affect providers, distributors, and others who administer, attempt to administer, or conspire to provide such drugs without informed consent, and it would likely affect medication abortion practices and related prescribing, shipping, and dispensing activities.
There is no recorded committee transcript or vote history in the provided material, so there is no direct evidence of debate or bipartisan support/opposition from proceedings. Based on the bill’s sponsors and its framing, the measure appears to be strongly aligned with anti-abortion policy goals and focused on protecting women from coerced or deceptive administration of abortion drugs. The absence of hearings, amendments, or votes in the supplied context means sentiment can only be inferred from the bill text itself rather than from legislative discussion.
The main points of contention are likely to be the bill’s criminalization of conduct involving abortion-inducing drugs, its federal reach through interstate-commerce language, and its definitions of informed consent and conspiracy. Supporters would likely view the bill as a protection against coercion, assault, and unsafe or deceptive medication abortion practices, while opponents would likely argue that it expands federal criminal law into abortion care, could chill lawful prescribing and telehealth distribution, and may create ambiguity around consent and intent. The inclusion of mifepristone and misoprostol, along with the broad conspiracy language covering shipping or mailing without reasonable measures to verify the requester, is likely to be especially controversial.