Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1973 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R4836 EAS-D
2	2	By: Kolkhorst S.B. No. 1973
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the regulation of human body acquisition services and
10	10	authorized recipients.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 8, Health and Safety Code, is
13	13	amended by adding Chapter 692B to read as follows:
14	14	CHAPTER 692B. HUMAN BODY ACQUISITION SERVICES AND AUTHORIZED
15	15	RECIPIENTS
16	16	Sec. 692B.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
17	17	(1) "Authorized recipient" means a person or facility
18	18	located in this state that in accordance with state law and the
19	19	rules adopted under this chapter obtains a whole body, body
20	20	segment, part, or nontransplant anatomical part from a human body
21	21	acquisition service or the commission.
22	22	(2) "Body" means the intact corporeal remains of a
23	23	human.
24	24	(3) "Body segment" means a portion of a whole body
25	25	detached for purposes of study, evaluation, education, or research
26	26	and composed of contiguous mixed tissues with relationships altered
27	27	only at the segment boundaries.
28	28	(4) "Commission" means the Texas Funeral Service
29	29	Commission.
30	30	(5) "Department" means the Department of State Health
31	31	Services.
32	32	(6) "Human body acquisition service" means a person or
33	33	facility that solicits, retrieves, performs donor selection on,
34	34	preserves, transports, allocates, distributes, acquires,
35	35	processes, stores, or arranges storage for whole bodies, body
36	36	segments, parts, or nontransplant anatomical parts, solely for
37	37	education or research purposes.
38	38	(7) "Nontransplant anatomical part" means a part
39	39	donated for a purpose other than transplantation.
40	40	(8) "Part" has the meaning assigned by Section
41	41	692A.002.
42	42	Sec. 692B.002. RULES. To protect the public health,
43	43	safety, and welfare, the commission, in consultation with the
44	44	department, shall adopt the rules necessary to implement and
45	45	enforce this chapter.
46	46	Sec. 692B.003. INFORMED CONSENT REQUIRED. (a) A human body
47	47	acquisition service may accept a donation of a whole body, body
48	48	segment, part, or nontransplant anatomical part only if the service
49	49	obtains documented informed consent to the donation from a person
50	50	authorized to consent to the donation in accordance with Chapter
51	51	692A.
52	52	(b) The informed consent document for a donation governed by
53	53	this chapter must:
54	54	(1) identify the authorized recipient of the donation;
55	55	(2) indicate whether the gift is of the whole body or
56	56	is limited to specified identifiable body segments, parts, or
57	57	nontransplant anatomical parts; and
58	58	(3) clearly specify the authorized uses of the donated
59	59	body, segments, or parts.
60	60	(c) Except as provided by Section 692B.004, a human body
61	61	acquisition service may only use or transfer a whole body, body
62	62	segment, part, or nontransplant anatomical part for a purpose
63	63	specified in the informed consent document.
64	64	Sec. 692B.004. PRESUMPTION FOR RECIPIENT OF UNSPECIFIED
65	65	DONATION. (a) Unless specific direction is provided in an informed
66	66	consent document for a donation of a whole body, body segment, part,
67	67	or nontransplant anatomical part, the donated body, segment, or
68	68	part is presumed to be donated to the commission or a person or
69	69	facility included on the commission's list of authorized recipients
70	70	under Section 692B.006(c).
71	71	(b) The commission or a person or facility included on the
72	72	commission's list of authorized recipients under Section
73	73	692B.006(c) may transfer or authorize the transfer of the whole
74	74	body, body segment, part, or nontransplant anatomical part to
75	75	another person authorized to receive an anatomical gift under
76	76	Chapter 691 or 692A for purposes of:
77	77	(1) medical or dental education;
78	78	(2) medical or dental research; or
79	79	(3) the advancement of medical or dental science,
80	80	therapy, or transplantation.
81	81	Sec. 692B.005. RETRIEVAL AND ACQUISITION OF NONTRANSPLANT
82	82	ANATOMICAL PARTS. A nontransplant anatomical part may be retrieved
83	83	only on the premises of:
84	84	(1) a hospital licensed under Chapter 241; or
85	85	(2) a human body acquisition service.
86	86	Sec. 692B.006. RULES. (a) The commission by rule, and in
87	87	consultation with the department, shall establish eligibility
88	88	criteria for a person or facility to qualify as an authorized
89	89	recipient to receive a whole body, body segment, part, or
90	90	nontransplant anatomical part under this chapter.
91	91	(b) The rules adopted under Subsection (a) must prohibit the
92	92	transfer of a whole body, body segment, part, or nontransplant
93	93	anatomical part to:
94	94	(1) a person or facility located in a country for which
95	95	coverage is prohibited under Section 1380.003, Insurance Code;
96	96	(2) a business entity, as defined by Section 572.002,
97	97	Government Code; or
98	98	(3) a person or facility that charges an admission fee
99	99	to allow members of the public to view a whole body, body segment,
100	100	part, or nontransplant anatomical part.
101	101	(c) The commission shall publish and maintain a list of
102	102	persons and facilities that satisfy the eligibility criteria under
103	103	Subsection (a) on the commission's Internet website.
104	104	(d) The commission shall conduct a random audit of persons
105	105	and facilities that receive a whole body, body segment, part, or
106	106	nontransplant anatomical part under this chapter to ensure the
107	107	religious or sincerely held beliefs of the deceased individual
108	108	whose whole body, body segment, part, or nontransplant anatomical
109	109	part the institution receives are honored during each step of the
110	110	human body acquisition process, if those beliefs are known to the
111	111	commission.
112	112	Sec. 692B.007. REPORT. On request, a human body
113	113	acquisition service or authorized recipient shall submit to the
114	114	commission reports on the service's or recipient's activities as
115	115	may be required by this chapter or commission rule. The director of
116	116	the human body acquisition service or authorized recipient shall
117	117	sign each report.
118	118	Sec. 692B.008. ENFORCEMENT AND PENALTIES. (a) Each human
119	119	body acquisition service and authorized recipient is subject to
120	120	regulation, including investigations and enforcement, under
121	121	Chapter 691.
122	122	(b) A person who violates this chapter is subject to the
123	123	enforcement and penalties authorized under Chapter 691 as if the
124	124	person violated or failed to perform a duty imposed under that
125	125	chapter.
126	126	SECTION 2. Chapter 692B, Health and Safety Code, as added by
127	127	this Act, applies only to conduct that is subject to regulation,
128	128	enforcement, and penalties under that chapter that occurs on or
129	129	after the effective date of this Act. Conduct that occurs before
130	130	that date is governed by the law in effect on the date the conduct
131	131	occurred, and the former law is continued in effect for that
132	132	purpose.
133	133	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.