Bill Text: TX HB754 | 2025-2026 | 89th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to human trafficking prevention, including training for medical assistants, disclosure of human trafficking information by certain health care facilities, and protection for facility employees who report human trafficking.
Sponsorship: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-2)
Status: (Passed) 2025-06-20 - Effective on 9/1/25 [HB754 Detail]
Download: Texas-2025-HB754-Enrolled.html
| H.B. No. 754 | ||
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| relating to human trafficking prevention, including training for | ||
| medical assistants, disclosure of human trafficking information by | ||
| certain health care facilities, and protection for facility | ||
| employees who report human trafficking. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Subtitle G, Title 4, Health and Safety Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Chapter 328 to read as follows: | ||
| CHAPTER 328. HUMAN TRAFFICKING PREVENTION IN CERTAIN FACILITIES | ||
| Sec. 328.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: | ||
| (1) "Facility" has the meaning assigned by Section | ||
| 31.002. | ||
| (2) "Medical assistant" has the meaning assigned by | ||
| Section 763.001. | ||
| Sec. 328.002. HUMAN TRAFFICKING SIGNS REQUIRED. (a) A | ||
| facility shall display a sign, at least 11 inches by 17 inches in | ||
| size, written in at least a 16-point font and in the form prescribed | ||
| by the attorney general, that includes: | ||
| (1) the following statements: | ||
| (A) "All health care practitioners and medical | ||
| assistants are required to receive human trafficking prevention | ||
| training."; and | ||
| (B) "An employee may not be disciplined, | ||
| retaliated against, or otherwise discriminated against for | ||
| reporting in good faith a suspected act of human trafficking."; | ||
| (2) information on recognizing and reporting human | ||
| trafficking and a list of human trafficking indicators; | ||
| (3) a phone number the attorney general designates for | ||
| reporting a suspected act of human trafficking or a violation of | ||
| this chapter; and | ||
| (4) contact information for reporting suspicious | ||
| activity to the Department of Public Safety. | ||
| (b) The sign described by Subsection (a) must be posted: | ||
| (1) in a location easily visible to all facility | ||
| employees; and | ||
| (2) separately in English, Spanish, and any other | ||
| primary language spoken by 10 percent or more of the facility's | ||
| employees. | ||
| Sec. 328.003. DISCRIMINATION AND RETALIATION PROHIBITED. A | ||
| facility may not discipline, retaliate against, or otherwise | ||
| discriminate against a facility employee who in good faith reports | ||
| a suspected act of human trafficking to the facility, a law | ||
| enforcement agency, the National Human Trafficking Resource | ||
| Center, the attorney general, or another appropriate authority. | ||
| SECTION 2. Subtitle A, Title 9, Health and Safety Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Chapter 763 to read as follows: | ||
| CHAPTER 763. HUMAN TRAFFICKING PREVENTION TRAINING | ||
| SUBCHAPTER A. TRAINING FOR MEDICAL ASSISTANTS | ||
| Sec. 763.001. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: | ||
| (1) "Commission" means the Health and Human Services | ||
| Commission. | ||
| (2) "Executive commissioner" means the executive | ||
| commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission. | ||
| (3) "Human trafficking" means conduct that | ||
| constitutes an offense under Section 20A.02, Penal Code. | ||
| (4) "Medical assistant" means an individual who, under | ||
| the supervision of a physician, assists with patient care | ||
| management, executes administrative duties, and performs clinical | ||
| procedures, including: | ||
| (A) conducting aseptic procedures; | ||
| (B) obtaining vital signs; | ||
| (C) preparing patients for the physician's care; | ||
| (D) performing venipunctures and non-intravenous | ||
| injections; | ||
| (E) observing and reporting patients' symptoms; | ||
| (F) administering basic first aid; | ||
| (G) assisting with patient examinations or | ||
| treatments; | ||
| (H) operating office medical equipment; | ||
| (I) collecting routine laboratory specimens, as | ||
| directed by the physician; | ||
| (J) administering medication, as directed by the | ||
| physician; | ||
| (K) performing basic laboratory procedures; and | ||
| (L) performing dialysis procedures, including | ||
| home dialysis. | ||
| Sec. 763.002. REQUIRED HUMAN TRAFFICKING TRAINING. A | ||
| medical assistant, within the time prescribed by commission rule, | ||
| shall successfully complete a training course approved by the | ||
| executive commissioner on identifying, assisting, and reporting | ||
| victims of human trafficking. | ||
| Sec. 763.003. TRAINING COURSE APPROVAL. (a) The executive | ||
| commissioner shall: | ||
| (1) approve training courses on human trafficking | ||
| prevention, including at least one course available without charge; | ||
| and | ||
| (2) post a list of the approved training courses on the | ||
| commission's Internet website. | ||
| (b) The executive commissioner shall update the list of | ||
| approved training courses described by Subsection (a) as necessary | ||
| and consider for approval training courses conducted by health care | ||
| facilities. | ||
| SECTION 3. As soon as practicable after the effective date | ||
| of this Act, the attorney general shall design the sign required by | ||
| Section 328.002, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act. | ||
| SECTION 4. As soon as practicable after the effective date | ||
| of this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human | ||
| Services Commission shall approve and post on the commission's | ||
| Internet website the list of approved human trafficking prevention | ||
| training courses and adopt rules necessary to implement Subchapter | ||
| A, Chapter 763, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act. | ||
| SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. | ||
| ______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
| President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
| I certify that H.B. No. 754 was passed by the House on April | ||
| 24, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 1, 2 present, not | ||
| voting. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
| I certify that H.B. No. 754 was passed by the Senate on May | ||
| 19, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Secretary of the Senate | ||
| APPROVED: _____________________ | ||
| Date | ||
| _____________________ | ||
| Governor | ||
