Utah Code 78B-12-105.1. Duty of biological father to share pregnancy expenses

78B-12-105.1. Duty of biological father to share pregnancy expenses.

(1)	Except as otherwise provided in this section, a biological father of a child has a duty to pay 50% of the mother’s pregnancy expenses.

Terms Used In Utah Code 78B-12-105.1

Child: means :

(a)	a son or daughter under the age of 18 years who is not otherwise emancipated, self-supporting, married, or a member of the armed forces of the United States;

(b)	a son or daughter over the age of 18 years, while enrolled in high school during the normal and expected year of graduation and not otherwise emancipated, self-supporting, married, or a member of the armed forces of the United States; or

(c)

a son or daughter of any age who is incapacitated from earning a living and, if able to provide some financial resources to the family, is not able to support self by own means. See Utah Code 78B-12-102

Court: means the district court or juvenile court. See Utah Code 78B-12-102

Parent: includes a natural parent, or an adoptive parent. See Utah Code 78B-12-102

Person: means :Utah Code 68-3-12.5

Pregnancy expenses: means an amount equal to:

(a)

the sum of a pregnant mother's:

(i)	health insurance premiums while pregnant that are not paid by an employer or government program; and

(ii)	medical costs related to the pregnancy, incurred after the date of conception and before the pregnancy ends; minus

(b)

any portion of the amount described in Subsection (21)(a) that a court determines is equitable based on the totality of the circumstances, not including any amount paid by the mother or father of the child. See Utah Code 78B-12-102

(2)

(a)	If paternity is disputed, a biological father owes no duty under this section until the biological father’s paternity is established.

(b)	Once paternity is established, the biological father is subject to Subsection (1).

(3)

(a)	Any portion of a mother’s pregnancy expenses paid by the mother or the biological father reduces that parent‘s 50% share under Subsection (1), not the total amount of pregnancy expenses.

(b)	Subsection (3)(a) applies regardless of when the mother or biological father pays the pregnancy expense.

(4)

If a mother receives an abortion, as defined in Section 76-7-301, without the biological father’s consent, the biological father owes no duty under this section, unless:

(a)	the abortion is necessary to avert the death of the mother; or

(b)

the mother was pregnant as a result of:

(i)	rape, as described in Section 76-5-402;

(ii)	rape of a child, as described in Section 76-5-402.1; or

(iii)

incest, as described in Subsection 76-5-406(2)(j) or Section 76-7-102.

(5)	Subsection (1) does not apply if a court apportions pregnancy expenses under Section 30-3-5.

(6)	A person may seek payment under Subsection (1) in accordance with Section 78B-12-113.

(7)	Nothing in this section or Section 78B-12-212.1 requires a person to separately bill a biological father for pregnancy expenses.

Enacted by Chapter 111, 2021 General Session

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