Pennsylvania Bill Will Not Fine Women Who Miscarry

8th June 2021

Pennsylvania Bill Will Not Fine Women Who Miscarry

Healthcare facilities must file the certificate or be fined (Getty Images).

The Claim

Pennsylvania House Bill 118 would force women who experience a miscarriage to pay a fine and fill out a Fetal Death Certificate form.

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A Republican-backed bill in Pennsylvania requires healthcare facilities to treat miscarriages and abortions as fetal deaths and bury or cremate the remains. This led many on social media to claim that HB 118 will fine women who miscarry and force them to fill out a Fetal Death Certificate form.

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Misbar’s Analysis

Misbar concluded that HB 118 does not fine women for having a miscarriage. The bill, passed by the House Health Committee in a 15-10 vote, requires healthcare facilities to file for a Fetal Death Certificate and cremate or inter all fetal remains. If they fail to do so, the healthcare providers could face fines or even jail time.

This differs from current Pennsylvania law in how it defines fetal remains and how providers are expected to dispose of them. Under the existing Vital Statistics Law of 1953, fetal deaths are defined as “the expulsion or extraction from its mother of a product of conception after sixteen (16) weeks gestation.” HB 118 would eliminate the 16-week parameters. It would also require all fetal remains to be buried or cremated.

The potential fines would be imposed upon the healthcare providers if they fail to file for the Fetal Death Certificate or improperly dispose of the remains. The forms are filled out by the healthcare providers and not the women themselves.

Rep. Frank Ryan, who sponsored the bill, said it was prompted by his wife’s miscarriage when he was unable to claim the fetal remains for burial.