Bill Text: TX SB115 | 2025-2026 | 89th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to civil liability for, governmental health plan coverage of, and public funding for gender modification procedures and treatments.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2025-02-03 - Referred to State Affairs [SB115 Detail]
Download: Texas-2025-SB115-Introduced.html
| 89R2436 SCL-D | ||
| By: Hall | S.B. No. 115 | |
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| relating to civil liability for, governmental health plan coverage | ||
| of, and public funding for gender modification procedures and | ||
| treatments. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. The legislature finds that: | ||
| (1) as evidenced by a 2018 video of a Vanderbilt | ||
| University Medical Center administrator who promoted gender | ||
| modification surgeries as financially beneficial and stated that | ||
| entire clinics are being financed by phalloplasties, the medical | ||
| community has knowledge that many so-called "gender-affirming" | ||
| treatments are not in the best interest of the health of the patient | ||
| but rather are being promoted for the monetary gain the health care | ||
| facilities will receive from providing those treatments; and | ||
| (2) the medical community has a conflict of interest | ||
| in offering gender modification treatments and procedures because | ||
| those treatments and procedures create lifelong patients as a | ||
| result of required follow-up visits after those treatments and | ||
| procedures. | ||
| SECTION 2. Title 4, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Chapter 74B to read as follows: | ||
| CHAPTER 74B. LIABILITY FOR GENDER MODIFICATION PROCEDURES AND | ||
| TREATMENTS | ||
| Sec. 74B.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "gender | ||
| modification procedure or treatment" means a health care procedure | ||
| or treatment provided for the purpose of transitioning a patient's | ||
| biological sex, as determined by the patient's sex organs, | ||
| chromosomes, and endogenous profiles, or affirming the patient's | ||
| perception of the patient's sex if that perception is inconsistent | ||
| with the patient's sex. The term includes: | ||
| (1) a surgery that sterilizes the patient, including: | ||
| (A) castration; | ||
| (B) vasectomy; | ||
| (C) hysterectomy; | ||
| (D) oophorectomy; | ||
| (E) metoidioplasty; | ||
| (F) orchiectomy; | ||
| (G) penectomy; | ||
| (H) phalloplasty; and | ||
| (I) vaginoplasty; | ||
| (2) a mastectomy; | ||
| (3) the prescription, administration, or supply of any | ||
| of the following medications that induce transient or permanent | ||
| infertility: | ||
| (A) puberty-blocking medication to stop or delay | ||
| normal puberty; | ||
| (B) supraphysiologic doses of testosterone to | ||
| females; or | ||
| (C) supraphysiologic doses of estrogen to males; | ||
| and | ||
| (4) the removal of any otherwise healthy or | ||
| non-diseased body part or tissue. | ||
| Sec. 74B.002. CONFLICT OF LAWS. To the extent this chapter | ||
| conflicts with another law, this chapter prevails. | ||
| Sec. 74B.003. STRICT LIABILITY FOR HEALTH COVERAGE. A | ||
| health benefit plan issuer is strictly liable to a patient for the | ||
| patient's medical, mental health, and pharmaceutical costs, | ||
| including costs associated with reversing a gender modification | ||
| procedure or treatment, incurred for the life of the patient as a | ||
| result of a gender modification procedure or treatment covered by | ||
| the issuer's plan. | ||
| Sec. 74B.004. LIABILITY FOR PHYSICIAN OR HEALTH CARE | ||
| PROVIDER. A physician or health care provider who provides a gender | ||
| modification procedure or treatment to a patient is: | ||
| (1) liable to the patient for a malpractice claim in | ||
| the provision of the procedure or treatment; and | ||
| (2) strictly liable to the patient for the patient's | ||
| medical, mental health, and pharmaceutical costs, including costs | ||
| associated with reversing a gender modification procedure or | ||
| treatment, incurred for the life of the patient as a result of the | ||
| procedure or treatment. | ||
| Sec. 74B.005. EXCEPTIONS. Sections 74B.003 and 74B.004 do | ||
| not apply to the provision by a physician or health care provider, | ||
| with the consent of a child's parent or legal guardian, if | ||
| applicable, and the coverage by a health benefit plan of | ||
| appropriate and medically necessary gender modification procedures | ||
| or treatments to a patient who: | ||
| (1) is born with a medically verifiable genetic | ||
| disorder of sex development, including: | ||
| (A) 46,XX chromosomes with virilization; | ||
| (B) 46,XY chromosomes with undervirilization; or | ||
| (C) both ovarian and testicular tissue; or | ||
| (2) does not have the normal sex chromosome structure | ||
| for male or female as determined by a physician through genetic | ||
| testing. | ||
| SECTION 3. Subtitle F, Title 10, Government Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Chapter 2273A to read as follows: | ||
| CHAPTER 2273A. PROHIBITED USES OF PUBLIC MONEY | ||
| Sec. 2273A.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: | ||
| (1) "Gender modification procedure or treatment" has | ||
| the meaning assigned by Section 74B.001, Civil Practice and | ||
| Remedies Code. | ||
| (2) "Governmental entity" means this state, a state | ||
| agency, or a political subdivision. | ||
| Sec. 2273A.002. USE FOR GENDER MODIFICATION PROCEDURE OR | ||
| TREATMENT. A governmental entity may not use or provide public | ||
| money for the provision or administration of a gender modification | ||
| procedure or treatment. | ||
| SECTION 4. Subtitle E, Title 8, Insurance Code, is amended | ||
| by adding Chapter 1373 to read as follows: | ||
| CHAPTER 1373. PROHIBITED COVERAGE OF GENDER MODIFICATION | ||
| PROCEDURES AND TREATMENTS | ||
| Sec. 1373.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "gender | ||
| modification procedure or treatment" has the meaning assigned by | ||
| Section 74B.001, Civil Practice and Remedies Code. | ||
| Sec. 1373.002. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. Notwithstanding | ||
| any other law, this chapter applies only to: | ||
| (1) a basic coverage plan under Chapter 1551; | ||
| (2) a basic plan under Chapter 1575; | ||
| (3) a primary care coverage plan under Chapter 1579; | ||
| (4) a plan providing basic coverage under Chapter | ||
| 1601; | ||
| (5) the state Medicaid program, including the Medicaid | ||
| managed care program operated under Chapter 540, Government Code; | ||
| and | ||
| (6) the child health plan program under Chapter 62, | ||
| Health and Safety Code. | ||
| Sec. 1373.003. PROHIBITED COVERAGE; EXCEPTION. (a) A | ||
| health benefit plan may not provide coverage for a gender | ||
| modification procedure or treatment. | ||
| (b) This section does not apply to the coverage by a health | ||
| benefit plan of appropriate and medically necessary gender | ||
| modification procedures or treatments to a patient who: | ||
| (1) is born with a medically verifiable genetic | ||
| disorder of sex development, including: | ||
| (A) 46,XX chromosomes with virilization; | ||
| (B) 46,XY chromosomes with undervirilization; or | ||
| (C) both ovarian and testicular tissue; or | ||
| (2) does not have the normal sex chromosome structure | ||
| for male or female as determined by a physician through genetic | ||
| testing. | ||
| SECTION 5. (a) Chapter 74B, Civil Practice and Remedies | ||
| Code, as added by this Act, applies only to a cause of action that | ||
| accrues on or after the effective date of this Act. | ||
| (b) The changes in law made by this Act apply only to a | ||
| health benefit plan delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed on | ||
| or after the effective date of this Act. | ||
| SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. | ||
