Senators GARRETT and SUTTON proposes the following amendment (SMIN-717.MW0008S):

Amend the bill, as and if amended, by striking SECTION 1 and inserting:

SECTION 1. This act may be cited as the "Mothers and Preborns Unborn Children Act".

Amend the bill further, SECTION 2, by striking Section 44-37-80(A) and (B) and inserting:

 (A) For the purposes of this section,:
  (1) "parentParent" means a biological parent, step-parent, adoptive parent, legal guardian, or other primary caregiver of a preborn unborn human child at the various gestational ages through infancy.
  (2) "Unborn Child" means a developing human being at any stage of gestational development process, from fertilization until live birth, including embryonic and fetal stages.
 (B) The Healthy Mother and Healthy Newborn Ombudsman Office is created within the Department of Health and Human Services Public Health. The office shall be headed by an ombudsman appointed by the Director of the Department of Health and Human Services Public Health.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 2, by striking Section 44-37-80(C)(2) and inserting:

  (2) refer parents to the appropriate programs related to services available to the parent or about which a parent inquires, which includes information as to how a parent can access a family cour order of child support pursuant to Section 63-17-325;

Amend the bill further, by striking SECTION 3 and inserting:

SECTION X. Section 63-17-10(B) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 (B) As used in this article, "child" includes, but is not limited to, a person under the age of eighteen years, which includes a unborn child at any stage of the gestational development process, from fertilization until live birth including the embryonic and fetal stage.

SECTION X. Section 63-17-325 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 Section 63-17-325. (A) A biological father An unmarried father of a child or a father of a child under an order of a child has a duty to pay the mother of the child the following financial obligations beginning with the date of conception as determined by the mother's physician:
  (1) child support payment obligations in an amount determined pursuant to Section 63-17-470;
  (2) fifty percent of the mother's pregnancy expenses, which include reasonable prenatal costs, reasonable postpartum recovery care, and the reasonable cost of birth.
   (a) Any portion of a mother's pregnancy expenses paid by the mother or the biological father reduces that parent's fifty percent obligation regardless of when the mother or biological father pays the pregnancy expenses.
   (b) Pregnancy expenses must include fifty percent of the mother's insurance premiums that are not paid by her employer or governmental program beginning from the date of conception and before the pregnancy ends, unless otherwise ordered by the court.
   (c) Item (2) does not apply if a court apportions pregnancy expenses as part of an award of child support in item (1).
 (B) In the case of a mother who becomes pregnant as a result of rape or incest, the biological father, in addition to the duties imposed by subsection (A), also is responsible for the full cost of any expenses incurred by the mother for mental health counseling arising out of the rape or incest.
 (C) The duties imposed by this section accrue at the time of conception and must be applied retroactively when paternity is contested, and medical evidence establishes the paternity of the child. Interest accrues on any retroactive obligations beginning with conception until either the obligations are brought current or paid in full whichever happens first. The rate of interest must be calculated based on the applicable interest rate for money decrees and judgments in this State established annually by the South Carolina Supreme Court.
 (D) Proceedings brought pursuant to this section for pregnancy-related expense or support obligations must be heard within thirty days of the filing of the action. The family court shall prioritize these matters to avoid undue delay in the provisions of financial support.

Renumber sections to conform.

Amend title to conform.