A proposed bill was advanced by the Florida House of Representatives that could allow parents to file wrongful-death lawsuits on behalf of fetuses.
Rep. Sam Greco was responsible for introducing the bill, known as HB 1517, which has been criticized as being an attempt to skirt an abortion ban. On the other hand, Republican lawmakers have continued to crack down on reproductive rights.
Wrongful-Death Lawsuits for Unborn Fetuses
This started around the time that the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, which essentially ended protection for abortions nationwide. Proponents of the bill argued that it does not intend to crack down on reproductive rights but only support grieving parents.
The bill, which passed the Florida House of Representatives on Wednesday, would authorize the parents of an unborn child to "recover certain damages" by filing wrongful-death lawsuits. Greco said that the proposal would let these parents recover amid the tragic circumstance of losing their unborn child, according to Newsweek.
Under the proposed bill, wrongful death lawsuits that involve fetuses will be treated similarly to those that involve regular children. However, the bill prohibits the parents from receiving some damages when the deceased is an unborn child.
An analysis of the bill revealed that it would extend the Wrongful Death Act to include fetuses "in the same way that other survivors may generally recover under the Act." What this means is that parents could sue for "mental pain" and "suffering" from the date of injury.
Abortion rights advocates, medical doctors, and advocates for domestic violence victims have expressed their opposition to the bill. Despite this, the proposal was approved by the Criminal and Civil Justice Committee on a party-line vote of five Republicans for and three Democrats against, the Tallahassee Democrat reported.
Helping Grieving Parents
Those who oppose the proposal argue that giving rights to an embryo sacrifices a woman's bodily autonomy and self-determination. Pro-life groups also joined the discussion and argued that an amendment to the bill created a loophole for abortions and needs to be closed.
Republican lawmakers believe that the bill would address a massive problem in the law regarding circumstances where parents are in an accident and are not able to collect damages for losing their unborn child.
Greco said that the bill is more about a loss that is too hard to understand for parents who lose their unborn children. On the other hand, ACLU legislative director Kara Gross argued that it is only part of a broader, deceptive strategy to intimidate abortion providers and patients, as per Florida Politics.
