By: Patrick S.B. No. 21
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to distributing or prescribing abortion-inducing drugs;
providing an administrative penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. SECTION 1. Chapter 171, Health and Safety Code,
is amended by adding Subchapter D to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER D. ABORTION-INDUCING DRUGS
Sec. 171.081. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Abortion" means the act of using or prescribing
an instrument, a medicine, a drug, or any other substance, device,
or means with the intent to terminate a clinically diagnosable
pregnancy of a woman and with knowledge that the termination by
those means will, with reasonable likelihood, cause the death of
the woman's unborn child. An act is not an abortion if the act is
done with the intent to:
(A) save the life or preserve the health of an
unborn child;
(B) remove a dead unborn child whose death was
caused by spontaneous abortion;
(C) remove an ectopic pregnancy; or
(D) treat a maternal disease or illness for which
the prescribed drug is indicated.
(2) "Abortion-inducing drug" means a medicine, a drug,
or any other substance prescribed or dispensed with the intent of
terminating a clinically diagnosable pregnancy of a woman and with
knowledge that the termination will, with reasonable likelihood,
cause the death of the woman's unborn child. The term includes
off-label use of drugs known to have abortion-inducing properties
that are prescribed with the intent of causing an abortion,
including misoprostol and methotrexate. The term does not include
a drug that may be known to cause an abortion but is prescribed for
other medical reasons.
(3) "Drug label" means a pamphlet accompanying an
abortion-inducing drug that:
(A) outlines the protocol tested and authorized
by the United States Food and Drug Administration and agreed to by
the drug company applying for authorization of the drug by that
agency; and
(B) delineates how a drug is to be used according
to approval by that agency.
(4) "Gestational age" means the amount of time that
has elapsed since the first day of a woman's last menstrual period.
(5) "Medical abortion" means the use of
abortion-inducing drugs to induce an abortion.
(6) "Physician" means an individual who is licensed to
practice medicine in this state, including a medical doctor and a
doctor of osteopathic medicine.
(7) "Pregnant" means the female reproductive
condition of having an unborn child in a woman's uterus.
(8) "Unborn child" means an offspring of human beings
from conception until birth.
Sec. 171.082. ENFORCEMENT BY TEXAS MEDICAL BOARD.
Notwithstanding Section 171.005, the Texas Medical Board shall
enforce this subchapter.
Sec. 171.083. DISTRIBUTION OF ABORTION-INDUCING DRUG.
(a) A person may not knowingly give, sell, dispense, administer,
provide, or prescribe an abortion-inducing drug to a pregnant woman
for the purpose of inducing an abortion in the pregnant woman or
enabling another person to induce an abortion in the pregnant woman
unless:
(1) the person who gives, sells, dispenses,
administers, provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug is
a physician; and
(2) the provision or prescription of the
abortion-inducing drug satisfies the protocol tested and
authorized by the United States Food and Drug Administration as
outlined in the abortion-inducing drug's drug label.
(b) Before the physician gives, sells, dispenses,
administers, provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug,
the physician must examine the pregnant woman and document, in the
woman's medical record, the gestational age and intrauterine
location of the pregnancy.
(c) The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug shall provide
the pregnant woman with a copy of the abortion-inducing drug's drug
label.
(d) The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug must:
(1) have a signed contract with another physician who
agrees to treat emergencies arising from use of the drug; and
(2) produce the signed contract on demand by the
pregnant woman or the Texas Medical Board.
(e) The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug shall provide
the pregnant woman with the name and phone number of:
(1) the physician who would treat an emergency arising
from use of the drug; and
(2) the hospital at which an emergency arising from
use of the drug would be treated.
(f) A physician who contracts to treat an emergency arising
from use of an abortion-inducing drug must have active admitting,
gynecological, and surgical privileges at the hospital designated
to treat the emergency.
(g) The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug, or the
physician's agent, must schedule a follow-up visit for the woman to
occur not more than 14 days after the administration of the drug.
At the follow-up visit, the physician must:
(1) confirm that the pregnancy is completely
terminated; and
(2) assess the degree of bleeding.
(h) The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug, or the
physician's agent, shall make a reasonable effort to ensure that
the woman returns for the scheduled appointment. The physician or
the physician's agent shall include a brief description of any
effort made to comply with this subsection, including the date,
time, and name of the person making the effort, in the woman's
medical record.
(i) If a physician provides an abortion-inducing drug to a
pregnant woman for the purpose of inducing an abortion as
authorized by this section and the physician knows that the woman
experiences a serious adverse event, as defined by the MedWatch
Reporting System, during or after using the drug, the physician
shall report the event to the United States Food and Drug
Administration through the MedWatch Reporting System within three
days of the event.
Sec. 171.084. ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY. (a) The Texas
Medical Board may:
(1) take disciplinary action under Chapter 164,
Occupations Code, against a person who violates Section 171.083; or
(2) assess an administrative penalty under Subchapter
A, Chapter 165, Occupations Code, against a person who violates
Section 171.083.
(b) A penalty may not be assessed under this section against
a pregnant woman who receives a medical abortion.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011, if this
Act receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for this Act to take
effect on that date, this Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
last day of the legislative session.