U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), of Brookhaven, on Wednesday reintroduced the Protecting Life and Integrity in Research Act. This act would end federal taxpayers’ support for research involving human fetal tissue obtained from abortions, and close loopholes in the law that have allowed the trafficking of body parts of aborted children to persist.

“The harvesting and trafficking of the body parts of unborn babies killed through abortion is heinous and unethical,” said Hyde-Smith, chair of the Senate Pro-Life Caucus. “Taxpayer dollars for medical research should be spent on research that will deliver results for enhancing quality of life, instead of devaluing life for the sake of research. This legislation would stop the Biden administration’s gross abuse of taxpayer funds.”

The legislation comes amid the ongoing federal investigation into the University of Pittsburg harvesting of tissue from aborted children for research; the Biden administration’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) move in 2021 to eliminate Trump-era NIH restrictions and ethics advisory board involving human fetal tissue from abortions; and NIH plans to spend another $61 million on human fetal tissue research in 2024.

The bill would prohibit all federal agencies from conducting, funding, approving, or otherwise supporting research involving human fetal tissue obtained from abortions, and close loopholes in federal law that the abortion industry has exploited to sell the body parts of aborted children for research. The bill only applies to fetal tissue from abortions. Research on human fetal tissue from stillbirths and miscarriages remains permitted.

Fourteen other senators are original cosponsors of the bill with Hyde-Smith — Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), James Risch (R-Idaho), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and Ted Budd (R-N.C.).

The measure is supported by Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, Americans United for Life, Catholic Vote, March for Life Action, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, Students for Life Action, and Concerned Women for America LAC.