On Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., introduced a proposal making it a federal crime for a doctor to knowingly perform an abortion on an out-of-state minor without parent consent.
Rubio’s “Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act” (CIANA) would “make it a federal crime for physicians to knowingly perform an abortion on an out of state minor without parental consent, notification, or judicial authorization” and “sets criminal penalties for those who violate, as well as provides exceptions when the life of a minor is endangered.” The bill would “also prohibit an individual who has committed incest from knowingly bringing that minor across states lines for the purpose of an abortion.”
“With the rights of parents and the safety of women at risk,” Rubio said on Tuesday. “Congress must take action to prevent underage abortions by giving states the federal backing necessary to enforce their parental involvement laws. Under current law, minors are subject to the exploitation and safety risks that often come from an overzealous interstate abortion industry.”
Rubio’s bill is backed by a host of Senate Republicans including U.S. Sens. Roy Blount of Missouri, Ted Cruz of Texas and Joni Ernst of Iowa.
At the end of last week, Rubio cosponsored a proposal from U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., which “would establish a permanent, government-wide prohibition of taxpayer funding for abortion” as opposed to the Hyde Amendment which needs to be renewed on annual basis.
“Millions of Americans oppose the use of federal dollars to support abortion,” Wicker said about his proposal on Monday. “As thousands gather in our nation’s capital this week to March for Life, it is well-past time Congress passed a comprehensive solution to the patchwork of regulations prohibiting federal funding for abortion services. Our legislation would create a permanent, government-wide prohibition on abortion funding so that not one taxpayer dollar goes toward the destruction of innocent human life.”
