This bill requires hospitals and doctors to be upfront about their policies on treating extremely premature babies. Right now, different hospitals have different rules about when they'll provide life-saving care to babies born very early—some hospitals might refuse treatment for babies born before 22 weeks of pregnancy, while others will try to save almost any baby born alive. Parents often don't know these policies until they're in crisis, arriving at a hospital expecting care only to find out the hospital won't treat their premature infant.

The bill says hospitals must publicly post their policies on this issue, and doctors must tell pregnant patients at their first prenatal visit what their hospital will and won't do for extremely premature babies. Hospitals also have to explain what they'll do if they can't handle the case—whether they'll transfer the mother and baby to another facility that can provide the needed care. Starting January 1, 2026, hospitals that receive Medicare or Medicaid funding must follow these disclosure rules or they'll lose that federal funding. The same requirement applies to doctors who deliver babies at these hospitals.

The goal is to give parents crucial information before a crisis happens, so they can make informed decisions about where to give birth and what to expect. It also encourages hospitals to be consistent in their approach to treating premature babies, since research suggests babies do better when born at hospitals that routinely provide intensive care for extreme prematurity.