Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2313 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	87R18536 SCL-F
2		-	By: Leach, et al. H.B. No. 2313
3		-	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2313:
4		-	By: Klick C.S.H.B. No. 2313
	1	+	87R10301 TYPED
	2	+	By: Leach H.B. No. 2313
5	3
6	4
7	5		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	6		AN ACT
9	7		relating to a required resource access assistance offer before an
10		-	abortion is performed ~~or induced~~.
	8	+	abortion is performed.
11	9		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	10		SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 171, Health and Safety
13	11		Code, is amended by adding Section 171.01205 to read as follows:
14	12		Sec. 171.01205. REQUIRED PRE-ABORTION RESOURCE ACCESS
15	13		ASSISTANCE OFFER. (a) In addition to the informed consent
16	14		requirements under Section 171.012, except during a medical
17		-	emergency, and before the abortion is performed or induced, the
18		-	physician who is to perform or induce an abortion shall confirm the
19		-	pregnant woman received a pre-abortion resource access assistance
20		-	offer, as required by this section, by verifying the unique
21		-	identifying number, devoid of the woman's personally identifiable
22		-	information, as provided by the commission.
	15	+	emergency, and before the abortion is performed, the physician who
	16	+	is to perform an abortion shall confirm the pregnant woman received
	17	+	a pre-abortion resource access assistance offer, as required by
	18	+	this section, by:
	19	+	(1) verifying that the unique identifying number
	20	+	provided to the woman as required by Subsection (d) is recorded in a
	21	+	secure database maintained by the commission; and
	22	+	(2) documenting the pregnant woman's unique
	23	+	identifying number in the woman's medical record.
23	24		(b) A care agent providing a resource access assistance
24	25		offer under this section:
25	26		(1) must be:
26		-	(A) licensed ~~in this state~~ as a counselor,
27		-	~~physician,~~ psychologist, social worker, nurse, advanced practice
28		-	~~registered~~ nurse, community health worker, physician's assistant,
29		-	~~or marriage~~ and family therapist; or
	27	+	(A) licensed as a counselor, doctor,
	28	+	psychologist, social worker, nurse, advanced practice registered
	29	+	nurse, community health worker, physician's assistant, or marriage
	30	+	and family therapist; or
30	31		(B) acting under the supervision of an individual
31	32		described by Paragraph (A);
32		-	(2) must:
33		-	(A) be authorized under a contract with the
	33	+	(2) must not:
	34	+	(A) have performed an abortion in the last two
	35	+	years;
	36	+	(B) have served as a director, board member,
	37	+	officer, volunteer, or employee for an abortion facility licensed
	38	+	under Chapter 245;
	39	+	(3) may not refer women to an abortion provider,
	40	+	recommend abortion, or take any other action that directly or
	41	+	indirectly advises or assists a woman in obtaining an abortion;
	42	+	(4) must be authorized under a contract with the
34	43		commission to provide resource access assistance offers and support
35	44		services on behalf of this state in accordance with this section;
36		-	(B) complete a training program on identifying
	45	+	and
	46	+	(5) must complete a training program on identifying
37	47		and assisting victims of human trafficking using a standardized
38	48		curriculum created by the human trafficking prevention task force
39		-	established under Section 402.035, Government Code; and
40		-	(C) comply with medical records privacy laws
41		-	under Chapter 181;
42		-	(3) in the two years preceding the offer may not:
43		-	(A) have performed or induced an abortion; or
44		-	(B) have served as a director, board member,
45		-	officer, volunteer, or employee for an abortion facility licensed
46		-	under Chapter 245; and
47		-	(4) may not refer a woman to an abortion provider.
	49	+	established under Section 402.035, Government Code.
48	50		(c) The resource access assistance offer must be provided by
49	51		and on behalf of this state at no cost to the pregnant woman from a
50	52		care agent who meets the qualifications described by Subsection
51		-	(b). The care agent during ~~the~~ resource access assistance offer
52		-	~~shall~~ provide:
	53	+	(b). The care agent during a resource access assistance offer shall
	54	+	provide:
53	55		(1) medically accurate information using the
54	56		informational materials described by Section 171.014;
55	57		(2) an assessment of eligibility for and offer of
56	58		assistance in obtaining support services other than abortion for
57		-	the woman or unborn child's biological father, including ~~housing,~~
58		-	employment, resume development, child care, prenatal and
	59	+	the pregnant woman or unborn child's biological father, including
	60	+	housing, employment, resume development, child care, prenatal and
59	61		postpartum medical care, mental health or behavioral counselling,
60	62		adoption services, financial assistance, abuse or neglect
61	63		prevention assistance, substance or alcohol abuse prevention
62	64		assistance, and health benefit plan coverage;
63	65		(3) education on available public and private
64		-	resources to address the woman's or biological father's
	66	+	resources to address the pregnant woman's or biological father's
65	67		socioeconomic needs; and
66	68		(4) screening for:
67	69		(A) family violence, abuse, and neglect
68	70		victimization;
69	71		(B) coercion of abortion; and
70	72		(C) human trafficking victimization.
71		-	(d) A care agent who obtains information that the pregnant
72		-	woman is a victim of human trafficking or coercion of abortion may:
73		-	(1) submit a report to the appropriate law enforcement
74		-	agency of the suspected human trafficking or coercion of abortion,
75		-	if, before submitting the report, the care agent:
76		-	(A) provides to the pregnant woman a written
77		-	disclosure that the woman's identifying information will be
78		-	provided in the report; and
79		-	(B) after receiving the written disclosure
80		-	described by Paragraph (A), the pregnant woman consents to the care
81		-	agent submitting the report; or
82		-	(2) provide to the pregnant woman information on the
83		-	methods available for the woman to report human trafficking or
84		-	coercion of abortion to the appropriate law enforcement agency.
85		-	(e) A care agent shall request a unique identifying number,
86		-	devoid of the pregnant woman's personally identifiable
87		-	information, from the system developed by the commission to certify
88		-	that the woman received the resource access assistance offer.
89		-	(f) The commission shall develop and maintain an
90		-	authentication system that provides the pregnant woman a unique
91		-	identifying number required under this section. The system must:
92		-	(1) allow a care agent to request a unique identifying
93		-	number for the pregnant woman;
94		-	(2) allow a physician who is to perform or induce an
95		-	abortion to verify the unique identifying number;
96		-	(3) ensure that the identity of an individual pregnant
97		-	woman, care agent, or physician, who is to perform or induce the
98		-	abortion, is not disclosed in the authentication system; and
99		-	(4) remove any individually identifying information
100		-	of the pregnant woman, care agent, or physician as soon as the
101		-	information is not needed to verify the unique identifying number.
	73	+	(d) After providing the resource access assistance offer,
	74	+	the care agent or the contracting agency that employs the care agent
	75	+	shall:
	76	+	(1) certify to the commission using a unique
	77	+	identifying number, devoid of personally identifying information
	78	+	of the pregnant woman, that the pregnant woman received the
	79	+	resource access assistance offer; and
	80	+	(2) provide to the pregnant woman the identifying
	81	+	number described by Subdivision (1).
	82	+	(e) A care agent shall report to the commission
	83	+	de-identified demographic information obtained through a resource
	84	+	access assistance offer provided under this section to assist the
	85	+	commission in determining the supply and demand of social services
	86	+	in the pregnant woman's geographic region.
	87	+	(f) The commission shall develop and maintain on the
	88	+	commission's Internet website a secure database to store the unique
	89	+	identifying numbers provided under Subsection (d) and that allows
	90	+	the care agent to submit the de-identified information required
	91	+	under Subsection (e).
102	92		(g) The commission shall establish a single toll-free
103	93		telephone number through which a woman seeking an abortion in this
104	94		state may receive a resource access assistance offer on a 24-hour
105	95		basis. The commission must ensure the placed call automatically
106	96		routes the woman to a care agent at a contracting agency to provide
107	97		the resource access assistance offer.
108	98		(h) The pregnant woman:
109		-	(1) is not required to:
110		-	(A) provide any information to the care agent or
111		-	contracting agency; or
112		-	(B) initiate or complete services offered under
113		-	this section to obtain an abortion;
114		-	(2) may decline services under this section at any
	99	+	(1) is not required to provide any information to the
	100	+	care agent or agency;
	101	+	(2) is not required to initiate or complete services
	102	+	offered under this section in order to obtain an abortion;
	103	+	(3) may decline services under this section at any
115	104		time; and
116		-	(3) if accepting a resource assistance offer, shall
117		-	~~retain access to~~ the offer ~~until the second anniversary~~ of the ~~date~~
118		-	~~of acceptance, regardless of the~~ woman's pregnancy.
	105	+	(4) if accepting a resource assistance offer, shall
	106	+	have the offer available for two calendar years regardless of the
	107	+	pregnant woman's pregnancy.
119	108		SECTION 2. Section 171.0121, Health and Safety Code, is
120	109		amended to read as follows:
121	110		Sec. 171.0121. MEDICAL RECORD. (a) Before the abortion
122	111		begins, a copy of the signed, written certification received by the
123	112		physician under Section 171.012(a)(6) and documentation of the
124	113		receipt of the resource access assistance offer required under
125	114		Section 171.01205 must be placed in the pregnant woman's medical
126	115		records.
127	116		(b) A copy of the signed, written certification required
128	117		under Sections 171.012(a)(5) and (6) and documentation of the
129	118		receipt of the resource access assistance offer required under
130	119		Section 171.01205 shall be retained by the facility where the
131	120		abortion is performed until:
132	121		(1) the seventh anniversary of the date it is signed;
133	122		or
134	123		(2) if the pregnant woman is a minor, the later of:
135	124		(A) the seventh anniversary of the date it is
136	125		signed; or
137	126		(B) the woman's 21st birthday.
138	127		SECTION 3. (a) Notwithstanding Section 171.01205, Health
139	128		and Safety Code, as added by this Act, and Section 171.0121, Health
140	129		and Safety Code, as amended by this Act, a physician is not required
141	130		to comply with the changes in law made by this Act before April 1,
142	131		2023.
143	132		(b) Not later than August 31, 2022, the executive
144	133		commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission shall
145	134		adopt rules as necessary to implement this Act.
146	135		(c) Not later than April 1, 2023, the Health and Human
147	136		Services Commission shall contract with one or more contracting
148	137		agencies that employ care agents throughout this state to provide
149	138		the pre-abortion resource access assistance offer and assistance in
150	139		obtaining support services described by Section 171.01205, Health
151	140		and Safety Code, as added by this Act.
152	141		SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
153		-	an abortion performed or induced on or after April 1, 2023. An
154		-	abortion performed or induced before April 1, 2023, is governed by
155		-	the law applicable to the abortion immediately before the effective
156		-	date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that
157		-	purpose.
	142	+	an abortion performed on or after April 1, 2023. An abortion
	143	+	performed before April 1, 2023, is governed by the law applicable to
	144	+	the abortion immediately before the effective date of this Act, and
	145	+	that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
158	146		SECTION 5. It is the intent of the legislature that every
159	147		provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or word
160	148		in this Act, and every application of the provisions in this Act to
161	149		each person or entity, are severable from each other. If any
162	150		application of any provision in this Act to any person, group of
163	151		persons, or circumstances is found by a court to be invalid for any
164	152		reason, the remaining applications of that provision to all other
165	153		persons and circumstances shall be severed and may not be affected.
166		-	SECTION 6. The Health and Human Services Commission is
167		-	required to implement this Act only if the legislature appropriates
168		-	money specifically for that purpose. If the legislature does not
169		-	appropriate money specifically for that purpose, the commission
170		-	may, but is not required to, implement the Act using other
171		-	appropriations available for the purpose.
172		-	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
	154	+	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.