These printed materials shall state that it is unlawful for any individual to coerce a woman to undergo an abortion. The printed materials shall also state that any physician who performs an abortion upon a woman without her informed consent may be liable to her for damages in a civil action and
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that the law permits adoptive parents to pay costs of prenatal care, childbirth, and neonatal care. The printed materials shall include the following statement: “The Territory of Guam strongly urges you to contact the resources provided in this booklet before making a final decision about abortion. The law requires that your physician or his or her agent give you the opportunity to call agencies and service providers like these before you undergo an abortion.” (2) Printed materials that include information on the support obligations of the father of a child who is born alive, including but not limited to the father's legal duty to support his child, which may include child support payments and health insurance, and the fact that paternity may be established by written declaration of paternity or by court action. The printed material shall also state that more information concerning paternity establishment and child support services and enforcement may be obtained by calling the Office of the Attorney General of Guam, Child Support Enforcement Division. (3) Printed materials that inform the pregnant woman of the probable anatomical and physiological characteristics of an unborn child at two (2) - week gestational increments from fertilization to full term, including color photographs of the developing unborn child at two (2) - week gestational increments. The descriptions shall include information about brain and heart functions, the presence of external members and internal organs during the applicable stages of development, and any relevant information on the possibility of the child's survival at several and equidistant increments throughout a full term pregnancy. If a photograph is not available, a picture must contain the dimensions of the unborn child and must be anatomically accurate and realistic. The materials shall be objective, nonjudgmental, and designed to convey only accurate scientific information about the unborn child at the various gestational ages.
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(4) Printed materials which contain objective information describing the various surgical and drug-induced methods of abortion, as well as the immediate and long-term medical risks commonly associated with each abortion method including but not limited to the risks of infection, hemorrhage, cervical or uterine perforation or rupture, any potential effect upon future capability to conceive as well as to sustain a pregnancy to full term, the possible adverse psychological effects associated with an abortion, and the medical risks associated with carrying a child to term. (5) A checklist certification to be used by the physician or a qualified person under Subsection (b)(5) of this § 3218.1, which will list all the items of information which are to be given to the woman by the physician or a qualified person under this § 3218.1. (d) Cost of Materials. The Department shall make available the materials enumerated in Subsection (c) of this § 3218.1 for purchase by the physician or qualified person who is required to provide these materials to women pursuant to Subsection (b)(3) of this § 3218.1 at such cost as reasonably determined by the Department. No claim of inability to pay the cost charged by the Department for these materials will excuse any party from complying with the requirements set forth in this § 3218.1. (e) Emergencies. When a medical emergency compels the performance of an abortion or termination of pregnancy, the physician shall inform the woman, before the abortion if possible, of the medical indications supporting the physician's judgment that an immediate abortion or termination of pregnancy is necessary to avert her death or that a twenty-four (24) hour delay would cause substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function. (f) Criminal Penalties. Any person who intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly violates this Act is guilty of a misdemeanor. (g) Civil and Administrative Claims. In addition to whatever remedies are available under the common law or statutory laws of Guam, failure to comply with the requirements of this Act shall:
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(1) in the case of an intentional violation of the Act, constitute prima facie evidence of a failure to obtain informed consent. When requested, the court shall allow a woman upon whom an abortion was performed or attempted to be performed allegedly in violation of this Act to be identified in any action brought pursuant to this Act using solely her initials or the pseudonym “Jane Doe.” Further, with or without a request, the court may close any proceedings in the case from public attendance, and the court may enter other protective orders in its discretion to preserve the privacy of the woman upon whom the abortion was performed or attempted to be performed allegedly in violation of this Act. (2) Provide a basis for professional disciplinary action under 10 GCA § 11110. (3) Provide a basis for recovery for the woman for the wrongful death of her unborn child under Title 7 GCA § 12109, whether or not the unborn child was born alive or was viable at the time the abortion was performed. SOURCE: Added by P.L. 31-235:2 (Nov. 1, 2012). 2013 NOTE: This provision was to become effective sixty (60) days after the “printed materials” described in § 3218.1 (c) and the “checklist certification” described in § 3218.1(c)(5) were approved by the Department of Public Health and Social Services (DPHSS) pursuant to the rule-making process set forth in Title 5, Chapter 9, Article 3 of the Guam Code Annotated. P.L. 31-235:4 (Nov. 1, 2012). P.L. 32-089:2 (Nov. 27, 2013) amended the approving authority from DPHSS to “a majority vote of a team consisting of the Director of DPHSS, who shall serve as the Chairperson, the Medical Director of the DPHSS; and OB/GYN doctor from the Guam Medical Association; a Social Worker from the National Association of Social Workers; and a Psychiatrist from the Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center.” The “printed materials” described in § 3218.1 (c) and the “checklist certification” described in § 3218.1(c)(5) were to be approved no later than 120 days after enactment, pursuant to P.L. 32-089:2. 2012 NOTE: Subsection designations in subsection (b) were altered to adhere to the Compiler’s alpha-numeric scheme in accordance with the authority granted by 1 GCA § 1606.
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