Chapter 91

9 GCA CRIMES AND CORRECTIONS CH. 91 INFANT CHILD ’S RIGHT TO LIFE ACT 1 CHAPTER 91 INFANT CHILD 'S RIGHT TO LIFE ACT SOURCE: Entire chapter added by P.L. 32-090:2 (Nov. 27, 2 013). § 91.01. Title. § 91.02. Legislative Findings and Purpose. § 91.03. Definitions. § 91.04. Requirements and Responsibilities. § 91.05. Criminal Penalties. § 91.06. Civil and Administrative Action. § 91.01. Title. This Act may be known and cited as the 'Infant Chil d’s Right to Life Act.' § 91.02. Legislative Findings and Purpose. (a) I Liheslaturan Guåhan finds that: (1) All children, no matter their age, have the rig ht to life. Guam has a paramount interest in protecting all human li fe. (2) If an abortion results in the live birth of an infant, the infant is a legal person for all purposes under the laws of G uam. (3) Guam must assert its interest in protecting an infant whose live birth occurred as the result of an abortion. (4) Without proper legal protection, newly-born inf ants who survive abortions could be denied proper life-savin g or life-sustaining medical treatment and left to die. (b) Accordingly, it is the purpose of this Act to e nsure the protection and promotion of the health and

ions could be denied proper life-savin g or life-sustaining medical treatment and left to die. (b) Accordingly, it is the purpose of this Act to e nsure the protection and promotion of the health and wellbeing of all in fants born alive in Guam. Therefore, this Act mandates that healthcare provid ers give medically appropriate and reasonable life-saving and life-sus taining medical care and treatment to all born alive infants. § 91.03. Definitions. For the purposes of this Act only: COL103120149 GCA CRIMES AND CORRECTIONS CH. 91 INFANT CHILD ’S RIGHT TO LIFE ACT 2 (a) Abortion means the termination of a human preg nancy with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus. (b) Born alive or live birth means the complete ex pulsion or extraction of an infant from his or her mother, reg ardless of the state of gestational development, that, after expulsion or e xtraction, whether or not the umbilical cord has been cut or the placenta is attached, and regardless of whether the expulsion or extraction o ccurs as a result of natural or induced labor, cesarean section, or indu ced abortion, shows any evidence of life, including, but not limited to , one or more

of whether the expulsion or extraction o ccurs as a result of natural or induced labor, cesarean section, or indu ced abortion, shows any evidence of life, including, but not limited to , one or more of the following: (1) breathing; (2) a heartbeat; (3) umbilical cord pulsation; or (4) definite movement of voluntary muscles. (c) Consent means knowledge of and explicit or impl icit agreement to or instruction to perform a violation of this Act. (d) Facility or medical facility means any public or private hospital, clinic, center, medical school, medical t raining institution, healthcare facility, physician's office, infirmary, dispensary, ambulatory surgical treatment center, or other institution or location wherein medical care is provided to any person. (e) Infant, for the purposes of this Act, and as us ed in this Act, means a child of the species homo sapiens that has been completely expulsed or extracted from its mother, regardless o f the stage of gestational development, until the age of thirty (3 0) days post birth. An infant is also a human being for purposes of Chapte r 16 of Title 9, Guam Code Annotated.

other, regardless o f the stage of gestational development, until the age of thirty (3 0) days post birth. An infant is also a human being for purposes of Chapte r 16 of Title 9, Guam Code Annotated. (f) Premature or preterm means occurring prior to t he thirty- seventh (37th) week of gestation. § 91.04. Requirements and Responsibilities. (a) A person shall not deny or deprive an infant of nourishment with the intent to cause or allow the death of the infan t for any reason. COL103120149 GCA CRIMES AND CORRECTIONS CH. 91 INFANT CHILD ’S RIGHT TO LIFE ACT 3 (b) A person shall not deprive an infant of medical ly appropriate and reasonable medical care and treatment or surgical c are. (c) The requirements of this Section shall not be c onstrued to prevent an infant's parent(s) or guardian(s) from refusing to give consent to medical treatment or surgical care which is not medically n ecessary or reasonable, including care or treatment which either: (1) is not necessary to save the life of the infant ; (2) has a potential risk to the infant’s life or he alth that outweighs the potential benefit to the infant of the treatmen t or care; or (3) is treatment that will do no more than

fe of the infant ; (2) has a potential risk to the infant’s life or he alth that outweighs the potential benefit to the infant of the treatmen t or care; or (3) is treatment that will do no more than prolong the act of dying when death is imminent. (d) The physician performing an abortion must take all medically appropriate and reasonable steps to preserve the li fe and health of an infant. If an abortion performed in a hospital results in a live birth, the physician attending the abortion shall provide immediate medi cal care to the infant, inform the mother of the live birth, and request th e transfer of the infant to a resident, on-duty or emergency care physician, who shall provide medically- appropriate and reasonable medical care and treatme nt to the infant. If an abortion performed in a facility other than a hospi tal results in a live birth, a physician attending the abortion shall provide imme diate medical care and treatment to the infant and call 9-1-1 for an emerg ency transfer of the infant to a hospital that shall provide medically-appropri ate and reasonable care and treatment to the infant.

dical care and treatment to the infant and call 9-1-1 for an emerg ency transfer of the infant to a hospital that shall provide medically-appropri ate and reasonable care and treatment to the infant. (e) If the physician described in Subsection (d) of this Section is unable to perform the duties in that Subsection be cause he is assisting the woman on whom the abortion was performed, then an a ttending physician's assistant, nurse, or other licensed healthcare prov ider must assume the duties outlined in that Subsection. (f) Any infant, including one born in the course of an abortion procedure, shall be treated as a legal person under the laws of Guam, with the same rights to medically-appropriate care and t reatment, and birth and death (if death occurs) certificates shall be issue d accordingly. (g) If, before the abortion, the mother and the fat her have stated in writing that they do not wish to keep the infant in the event that the abortion COL103120149 GCA CRIMES AND CORRECTIONS CH. 91 INFANT CHILD ’S RIGHT TO LIFE ACT 4 results in a live birth, and this writing is not re tracted before the abortion, the infant, if born alive, shall immediately upon birth become a ward of

NS CH. 91 INFANT CHILD ’S RIGHT TO LIFE ACT 4 results in a live birth, and this writing is not re tracted before the abortion, the infant, if born alive, shall immediately upon birth become a ward of Guam. (h) No person may use any infant for any type of sc ientific research or other kind of experimentation except as necessary t o protect or preserve the life and health of the premature born alive infant. § 91.05. Criminal Penalties. (a) Any physician, nurse, or other licensed healthc are provider who intentionally with premeditation, or intentionally, or knowingly, or recklessly, or by criminal negligence fails to prov ide reasonable and medically-appropriate and reasonable care and treat ment to an infant in the course of an abortion shall be guilty of a criminal homicide, as defined in Chapter 16 of Title 9, Guam Code Annotated, and may be punished in accordance with that Chapter. The mother will not b e liable, criminally or civilly, for actions of a physician, nurse, or othe r licensed healthcare provider, in violation of this Act to which she did not give her consent. (b) Any violation of § 91.04(h) of this Act concer ning the research use of a born-alive infant is a felony

censed healthcare provider, in violation of this Act to which she did not give her consent. (b) Any violation of § 91.04(h) of this Act concer ning the research use of a born-alive infant is a felony of the first deg ree, and upon conviction may be punished in accordance with Article 2, Chapter 8 0 of Title 9, Guam Code Annotated. § 91.06. Civil and Administrative Action. In addition to whatever remedies are available unde r the common or statutory laws of Guam, failure to comply with the requirements of this Act shall: (a) provide a basis for a civil action for compensa tory and punitive damages. Any conviction under this Act sha ll be admissible in a civil suit as prima facie evidence of a failure to provide medically appropriate and reasonable care and treatment to a born-alive infant. Any civil action may be based on a claim that the d eath of or injury to the born-alive infant was a result of simple neglig ence, gross negligence, wantonness, willfulness, intentional co nduct, or another violation of the legal standard of care; (b) provide a basis for professional disciplinary a ction for the suspension or revocation of any license of physicia ns, licensed and registered

, or another violation of the legal standard of care; (b) provide a basis for professional disciplinary a ction for the suspension or revocation of any license of physicia ns, licensed and registered nurses, or other licensed or regulated p ersons. Any conviction of any person for any failure to comply with the COL103120149 GCA CRIMES AND CORRECTIONS CH. 91 INFANT CHILD ’S RIGHT TO LIFE ACT 5 requirements of this Act shall result in the automa tic suspension of his or her license for a period of at least one year, a nd shall be reinstated after that time only under such conditions as shall be required to ensure compliance with this Act; and (c) provide a basis for recovery for the parent(s) of the infant, or the parent(s) or guardian(s) of the mother if the m other is a minor, for the wrongful death of the infant whether or not the infant was viable at the time abortion was performed. ---------- COL10312014