Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB754 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R2091 JDK-D
2	2	By: Middleton S.B. No. 754
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to informed consent requirements before the provision of
10	10	health care services.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. The legislature finds that:
13	13	(1) this state is responsible for ensuring individuals
14	14	lawfully residing in this state have the right to provide or
15	15	withhold consent for any health care service;
16	16	(2) the decision in Canterbury v. Spence, 464 F.2d 772
17	17	(D.C. Cir. 1972), establishing the concept of informed consent, has
18	18	become a bedrock principle of the laws of this country and of each
19	19	state;
20	20	(3) the American Medical Association's Code of Medical
21	21	Ethics Opinion 2.1.1 recognizes an individual's right to be fully
22	22	informed of a recommended health care service allowing the
23	23	individual to make an informed decision regarding the individual's
24	24	course of treatment, including whether to obtain or decline a
25	25	particular health care service;
26	26	(4) under 42 C.F.R. Section 482.13, a hospital is
27	27	required as a condition of participation in Medicare to establish a
28	28	process for obtaining the informed consent of a patient before
29	29	providing a health care service to the patient and to ensure "[t]he
30	30	patient or his or her representative (as allowed under State law)
31	31	has the right to make informed decisions regarding his or her care";
32	32	(5) the United States Supreme Court, in Jacobson v.
33	33	Massachusetts, 197 U.S. 11 (1905), upheld mandatory vaccination
34	34	policies imposed by state and local governments to combat smallpox,
35	35	and in PruneYard Shopping Ctr. v. Robins, 447 U.S. 74, 81 (1980),
36	36	acknowledged a state may provide "individual liberties more
37	37	expansive than those conferred by the Federal Constitution";
38	38	(6) any attempt to compel or coerce an individual
39	39	lawfully residing in this state into obtaining a health care
40	40	service contrary to the individual's preference is inconsistent
41	41	with the principles of informed consent; and
42	42	(7) Chapter 174, Health and Safety Code, as added by
43	43	this Act, prohibits any person from compelling or coercing an
44	44	individual lawfully residing in this state into obtaining a health
45	45	care service, including the administration of vaccines.
46	46	SECTION 2. Subtitle H, Title 2, Health and Safety Code, is
47	47	amended by adding Chapter 174 to read as follows:
48	48	CHAPTER 174. INFORMED CONSENT REQUIREMENTS FOR
49	49	HEALTH CARE SERVICES
50	50	Sec. 174.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
51	51	(1) "Health care facility" means a facility licensed,
52	52	certified, or otherwise authorized to provide health care services
53	53	in the ordinary course of business.
54	54	(2) "Health care practitioner" means an individual who
55	55	holds a license, certificate, or other authorization to engage in a
56	56	health care profession in this state.
57	57	(3) "Health care service" means a service a health
58	58	care practitioner or health care facility provides to an individual
59	59	to diagnose, prevent, treat, alleviate, cure, or heal a human
60	60	health condition, illness, injury, or disease. The term includes
61	61	the administration of a vaccine.
62	62	Sec. 174.002. EFFECT ON OTHER LAW. (a) To the extent of a
63	63	conflict between this chapter and other law, this chapter controls.
64	64	(b) The requirements provided by this chapter are in
65	65	addition to another applicable requirement for a health care
66	66	service provided by other law.
67	67	Sec. 174.003. PROHIBITED COERCION TO OBTAIN HEALTH CARE
68	68	SERVICE. A health care practitioner or another person may not
69	69	coerce or compel an individual lawfully residing in this state into
70	70	obtaining a health care service contrary to the individual's
71	71	preference.
72	72	Sec. 174.004. REQUIRED INFORMED CONSENT. (a) Except as
73	73	otherwise provided by other law, a health care practitioner may not
74	74	provide to an individual lawfully residing in this state a health
75	75	care service unless the practitioner obtains the informed consent
76	76	of the individual or a person authorized to consent on behalf of the
77	77	individual, including:
78	78	(1) a guardian in accordance with Chapter 1151,
79	79	Estates Code;
80	80	(2) an individual authorized to provide consent under
81	81	Section 32.001, Family Code;
82	82	(3) a parent in accordance with the rights and duties
83	83	described by Section 151.001, Family Code; and
84	84	(4) an agent under a medical power of attorney in
85	85	accordance with Chapter 166.
86	86	(b) For purposes of this section:
87	87	(1) an individual lacks the capacity to provide
88	88	informed consent for a health care service if the individual has
89	89	been coerced or compelled into obtaining the service; and
90	90	(2) a health care practitioner who advises or
91	91	recommends a health care service is not considered to have coerced
92	92	or compelled the individual into obtaining the service based solely
93	93	on that advice or recommendation.
94	94	Sec. 174.005. PROHIBITED ADVERSE ACTION. A person may not
95	95	take an adverse action or impose any penalty against an individual
96	96	lawfully residing in this state for the individual's refusal or
97	97	failure to obtain a health care service, including a refusal or
98	98	failure to receive immunization in accordance with state law.
99	99	Sec. 174.006. EXEMPTION FROM HEALTH CARE SERVICE
100	100	REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS IN HEALTH CARE FACILITIES. An
101	101	individual who is employed by, providing services in, or receiving
102	102	training in a health care facility that requires the individual to
103	103	obtain a health care service is exempt from the required service if
104	104	the individual requests orally or in writing an exemption based on:
105	105	(1) a sincerely held religious belief, observance, or
106	106	practice that is incompatible with the administration of the
107	107	service; or
108	108	(2) a recognized medical condition for which the
109	109	service is contraindicated.
110	110	Sec. 174.007. INJUNCTION. (a) The attorney general may
111	111	bring an action for injunctive relief against a person to prevent
112	112	the person from violating this chapter. In an order issuing an
113	113	injunction under this section, a court may include reasonable
114	114	requirements to prevent further violations of this chapter.
115	115	(b) The attorney general may recover court costs,
116	116	reasonable attorney's fees, investigation costs, witness fees, and
117	117	deposition expenses incurred in bringing an action under Subsection
118	118	(a).
119	119	Sec. 174.008. CIVIL LIABILITY. (a) A health care
120	120	practitioner who violates this chapter is liable to the individual
121	121	who is the subject of the violation for damages in an amount of not
122	122	less than $5,000.
123	123	(b) The prevailing party in an action brought under this
124	124	section may recover reasonable expenses incurred as a result of the
125	125	action, including court costs, reasonable attorney's fees,
126	126	investigation costs, witness fees, and deposition expenses.
127	127	(c) A health care practitioner may assert as an affirmative
128	128	defense to an action brought under Subsection (a) that the
129	129	individual who is the subject of the violation on which the action
130	130	is based or a person legally authorized to consent on behalf of the
131	131	individual stated to the practitioner before the health care
132	132	service was administered that informed consent was voluntarily
133	133	provided.
134	134	SECTION 3. Chapter 174, Health and Safety Code, as added by
135	135	this Act, applies only to a health care service provided on or after
136	136	the effective date of this Act.
137	137	SECTION 4. If any provision of this Act or its application
138	138	to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does
139	139	not affect other provisions or applications of this Act that can be
140	140	given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to
141	141	this end the provisions of this Act are declared severable.
142	142	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
143	143	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
144	144	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
145	145	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
146	146	Act takes effect September 1, 2025.