Nebraska lawmakers have passed a bill that expands the state’s Safe Haven Law. LB 876 was overwhelmingly passed on a 47-0 vote. Current state law allows for the surrendering of infants 30 days or younger in person at a hospital.
Bellevue Senator Rick Holdcroft’s bill raises the age to 90 days and provides additional options for a parent to voluntarily release custody of an infant. In addition to hospitals, the bill allows a parent or designee to turn a child over to an emergency care provider or at a fire or police station that is staffed 24 hours a day.
No one can be prosecuted solely for the act of surrendering a newborn under the bill’s provisions. LB876 also appropriates $65,000 to the state Department of Health and Human Services to develop, implement and maintain a public information program regarding the bill’s provisions.