FACT SHEET
Reading Between the Lines: How H.R. 3541, the
Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act, Discriminates
Against Women of Color
APRIL 2012
H.R. 3541, the Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act (PRENDA), formerly known as the Susan B.
Anthony and Frederick Douglass Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act, purports to address the
critical issues of race and gender discrimination by banning abortion based on the race or
sex of a fetus. Instead, it harms women’s health by further restricting access to
comprehensive reproductive health care, scrutinizes the health care decisions made by
women of color, exacerbates health disparities and penalizes health care providers who
offer abortion care.
PRENDA
PRENDA discriminates against women of color by assuming that they are unfit to make their
own health care decisions and perpetuates
xenophobic stereotypes about immigrant
women. It would force abortion providers to
This piece of legislation is a thinly veiled
racially profile their patients by threatening
attempt to undermine women’s
civil penalties and prison time for providing
constitutional rights and eliminate
race- or sex-selective abortions. Ultimately,
it would create a disincentive for abortion
women’s access to abortion. It only serves
providers to serve communities of color or
to deny women adequate and
provide abortions at all, only making it more
comprehensive health care and
difficult for women to access safe, legal
exacerbate health disparities.
abortion care.
PRENDA would:
— Testimony to the House of Representatives Judiciary
Subcommittee on the Constitution. Debra L. Ness,
President, National Partnership for Women & Families
2011
 Imprison doctors for up to five years
for performing an abortion knowing it
is sought “based on the sex, gender,
color or race of the child, or the race of the parent of that child.” This would place doctors
in the position of having to discern each woman’s abortion motives, particularly those of
women of color.
 Remove women’s support system by threatening five years in prison for anyone who
knowingly accompanies “a woman into the United States or across state lines for the
purpose of obtaining a sex-selection abortion or race-selection abortion.” Because nearly
90 percent of counties in the United States do not have a single abortion provider, many
women’s nearest abortion provider is in another state. Women already face numerous
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obstacles to obtaining abortion care. This places another obstacle in a woman’s way by
requiring friends and family to question her motives or risk fines or jail.
 Require doctors, nurses, counselors and other medical and mental health providers to
report even suspected violations of the law or face a fine or imprisonment. This places
doctors at risk and interferes in the relationship between medical professionals,
potentially creating an atmosphere of accusation and distrust.
 Allow a woman who obtained an abortion, the man involved in the pregnancy, or her
parent to sue a doctor for allegedly violating the law.
 Allow a woman, her spouse, her parents, or the attorney general to obtain an injunction
preventing a doctor from continuing to provide abortions. This provision has
tremendous potential to be misused, particularly by attorneys general who wish to put
abortion providers out of business.
 Contravene the meaning and intent of federal civil rights statutes and protections by
labeling violations as racial discrimination, and threatening the federal funds that
support doctors and clinics.
All of these provisions would single out women of color, who already have difficulty
accessing health care, and make it more difficult for them to obtain a legal health care
service.
Making Matters Worse
According to a 2009 report by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 17 percent of black women, 27
percent of Latinas, and 22 percent of Native American women are in fair or poor health.
Additionally, more than 22 percent of African American women have no health coveragei
which means less access to contraception, prenatal care and other critical reproductive
health services. African American women are three to four times more likely to die from
pregnancy-related causes than white women,ii and the unintended pregnancy rate for
African American women is 67 percent compared to 40 percent for white women.iii African
Americans are also nine times more likely to be diagnosed with HIV than whites, and 20
times more likely than white women to die from the disease.iv
At a time when a record number of women are living in extreme poverty and the need to
expand access to health care is more critical than ever, PRENDA would further restrict
access to comprehensive reproductive health care services and exacerbate health disparities
suffered by communities of color.
Real Solutions to Race & Gender Discrimination
The National Partnership supports real solutions that address race and gender
discrimination:
 The Real Education for Health Youth Act (HR3324/S1782) would provide funding for
comprehensive sex education programs in a variety of communities throughout the
United States.
NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP FOR WOMEN & FAMILIES | FACT SHEET | HOW PRENDA DISCRIMINATES AGAINST WOMEN OF COLOR
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 The Health Equity and Accountability Act (HR2954/S1504) aims to eliminate racial
and ethnic health disparities by calling for culturally and linguistically appropriate
health care; health workforce diversity; and improvement of health outcomes for
women, children and families.
 The Healthy Families Act (HR1876/S984) would allow workers to take paid, short-term
leave to care for themselves or their families and would allow individuals who are
victims of domestic violence, stalking or sexual assault to take time off to recover and
seek assistance.
 The Paycheck Fairness Act (HR1519/S797) would address the persistent pay gap
between men and women. This bill would strengthen the Equal Pay Act by closing
loopholes and improving the law’s effectiveness by making it harder for employers to
hide pay discrimination, rewarding employers that have good pay practices, and
helping train women and girls about salary negotiation.
1 Kaiser Family Foundation. (2009, June). Putting Women’s Health Care Disparities on the Map: Examining Racial and Ethnic Disparities at the State Level. Retrieved April 22, 2012
at http://www.statehealthfacts.org/downloads/womens-health-disparities/Putting%20Womens%20Healthcare%20Disparities%20On%20the%20Map.pdf.
2 Amnesty International. U.S. Maternal Health Crisis. Retrieved April 22, 2012 at http://www.amnestyusa.org/about-us/amnesty-50-years/50-years-of-human-rights/us-maternalhealth-crisis-facts
3 Guttmacher Institute (2011, August). Facts on Induced Abortion in the United States. Retrieved April 22, 2012 at http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html.
4 United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health. HIV/AIDS and African Americans. Retrieved April 22, 2012 at
http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/templates/content.aspx?lvl=2&lvlID=51&ID=3019
The National Partnership for Women & Families is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy group dedicated to promoting fairness in the workplace, access to quality health care and
policies that help women and men meet the dual demands of work and family. More information is available at www.NationalPartnership.org.
© 2012 National Partnership for Women & Families. All rights reserved.
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