Iowa Code § 146C.1 (2026)

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. “Abortion” means the termination of a human pregnancy with the intent other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus.

2. “Fetal heartbeat” means cardiac activity, the steady and repetitive rhythmic contraction of the fetal heart within the gestational sac.

3. “Medical emergency” means the same as defined in section 146A.1.

4. “Medically necessary” means any of the following:

a. The pregnancy is the result of a rape which is reported within forty-five days of the incident to a law enforcement agency or to a public or private health agency which may include a family physician.

b. The pregnancy is the result of incest which is reported within one hundred forty days of the incident to a law enforcement agency or to a public or private health agency which may include a family physician.

c. Any spontaneous abortion, commonly known as a miscarriage, if not all of the products of conception are expelled.

d. The attending physician certifies that the fetus has a fetal abnormality that in the physician’s reasonable medical judgment is incompatible with life.

5. “Physician” means a person licensed under chapter 148.

6. “Reasonable medical judgment” means a medical judgment made by a reasonably prudent physician who is knowledgeable about the case and the treatment possibilities with respect to the medical conditions involved.

7. “Unborn child” means the same as defined in section 146A.1. 2018 Acts, ch 1132, §3 \n