H.R. 798 — Dignity for Aborted Children Act

This section declares Congress's constitutional authority to enact the bill under the Interstate Commerce Clause, Section 5 of the 14th Amendment (including to enforce the prohibition on government denial of equal protection), and the Necessary and Proper Clause.

This section establishes requirements under the Public Health Service Act for abortion providers to offer patients, after an abortion, an informed consent form with options for disposing of human fetal tissue—either by the patient taking possession for transfer to interment or cremation services, or by releasing it to the provider for disposal via interment or cremation consistent with state law on human remains within seven days (with collective disposal permitted). Providers must obtain and retain signed consent forms in patient files; failure to do so incurs civil penalties up to $50,000, while disposal violations are punishable by fine, imprisonment up to five years, or both (with patients immune from prosecution). Providers must submit annual reports to the Secretary of Health and Human Services on aggregate abortions performed (including gestational ages and, for non-chemical methods, tissue transfers for interment/cremation or releases to patients), and the Secretary must report annually to Congress on abortions by state, procedure type, and disposal method. The requirements do not preempt stricter state laws on interment or cremation of human remains.