Bill Text: TX SB8 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Enrolled

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Bill Title: Relating to abortion, including abortions after detection of an unborn child's heartbeat; authorizing a private civil right of action.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 90-1)

Status: (Passed) 2021-05-19 - Effective on 9/1/21 [SB8 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-SB8-Enrolled.html

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S.B. No. 8

AN ACT
relating to abortion, including abortions after detection of an
unborn child's heartbeat; authorizing a private civil right of
action.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. This Act shall be known as the Texas Heartbeat
Act.
SECTION 2. The legislature finds that the State of Texas
never repealed, either expressly or by implication, the state
statutes enacted before the ruling in Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113
(1973), that prohibit and criminalize abortion unless the mother's
life is in danger.
SECTION 3. Chapter 171, Health and Safety Code, is amended
by adding Subchapter H to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER H. DETECTION OF FETAL HEARTBEAT
Sec. 171.201. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Fetal heartbeat" means cardiac activity or the
steady and repetitive rhythmic contraction of the fetal heart
within the gestational sac.
(2) "Gestational age" means the amount of time that
has elapsed from the first day of a woman's last menstrual period.
(3) "Gestational sac" means the structure comprising
the extraembryonic membranes that envelop the unborn child and that
is typically visible by ultrasound after the fourth week of
pregnancy.
(4) "Physician" means an individual licensed to
practice medicine in this state, including a medical doctor and a
doctor of osteopathic medicine.
(5) "Pregnancy" means the human female reproductive
condition that:
(A) begins with fertilization;
(B) occurs when the woman is carrying the
developing human offspring; and
(C) is calculated from the first day of the
woman's last menstrual period.
(6) "Standard medical practice" means the degree of
skill, care, and diligence that an obstetrician of ordinary
judgment, learning, and skill would employ in like circumstances.
(7) "Unborn child" means a human fetus or embryo in any
stage of gestation from fertilization until birth.
Sec. 171.202. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS. The legislature finds,
according to contemporary medical research, that:
(1) fetal heartbeat has become a key medical predictor
that an unborn child will reach live birth;
(2) cardiac activity begins at a biologically
identifiable moment in time, normally when the fetal heart is
formed in the gestational sac;
(3) Texas has compelling interests from the outset of
a woman's pregnancy in protecting the health of the woman and the
life of the unborn child; and
(4) to make an informed choice about whether to
continue her pregnancy, the pregnant woman has a compelling
interest in knowing the likelihood of her unborn child surviving to
full-term birth based on the presence of cardiac activity.
Sec. 171.203. DETERMINATION OF PRESENCE OF FETAL HEARTBEAT
REQUIRED; RECORD. (a) For the purposes of determining the
presence of a fetal heartbeat under this section, "standard medical
practice" includes employing the appropriate means of detecting the
heartbeat based on the estimated gestational age of the unborn
child and the condition of the woman and her pregnancy.
(b) Except as provided by Section 171.205, a physician may
not knowingly perform or induce an abortion on a pregnant woman
unless the physician has determined, in accordance with this
section, whether the woman's unborn child has a detectable fetal
heartbeat.
(c) In making a determination under Subsection (b), the
physician must use a test that is:
(1) consistent with the physician's good faith and
reasonable understanding of standard medical practice; and
(2) appropriate for the estimated gestational age of
the unborn child and the condition of the pregnant woman and her
pregnancy.
(d) A physician making a determination under Subsection (b)
shall record in the pregnant woman's medical record:
(1) the estimated gestational age of the unborn child;
(2) the method used to estimate the gestational age;
and
(3) the test used for detecting a fetal heartbeat,
including the date, time, and results of the test.
Sec. 171.204. PROHIBITED ABORTION OF UNBORN CHILD WITH
DETECTABLE FETAL HEARTBEAT; EFFECT. (a) Except as provided by
Section 171.205, a physician may not knowingly perform or induce an
abortion on a pregnant woman if the physician detected a fetal
heartbeat for the unborn child as required by Section 171.203 or
failed to perform a test to detect a fetal heartbeat.
(b) A physician does not violate this section if the
physician performed a test for a fetal heartbeat as required by
Section 171.203 and did not detect a fetal heartbeat.
(c) This section does not affect:
(1) the provisions of this chapter that restrict or
regulate an abortion by a particular method or during a particular
stage of pregnancy; or
(2) any other provision of state law that regulates or
prohibits abortion.
Sec. 171.205. EXCEPTION FOR MEDICAL EMERGENCY; RECORDS.
(a) Sections 171.203 and 171.204 do not apply if a physician
believes a medical emergency exists that prevents compliance with
this subchapter.
(b) A physician who performs or induces an abortion under
circumstances described by Subsection (a) shall make written
notations in the pregnant woman's medical record of:
(1) the physician's belief that a medical emergency
necessitated the abortion; and
(2) the medical condition of the pregnant woman that
prevented compliance with this subchapter.
(c) A physician performing or inducing an abortion under
this section shall maintain in the physician's practice records a
copy of the notations made under Subsection (b).
Sec. 171.206. CONSTRUCTION OF SUBCHAPTER. (a) This
subchapter does not create or recognize a right to abortion before a
fetal heartbeat is detected.
(b) This subchapter may not be construed to:
(1) authorize the initiation of a cause of action
against or the prosecution of a woman on whom an abortion is
performed or induced or attempted to be performed or induced in
violation of this subchapter;
(2) wholly or partly repeal, either expressly or by
implication, any other statute that regulates or prohibits
abortion, including Chapter 6-1/2, Title 71, Revised Statutes; or
(3) restrict a political subdivision from regulating
or prohibiting abortion in a manner that is at least as stringent as
the laws of this state.
Sec. 171.207. LIMITATIONS ON PUBLIC ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Notwithstanding Section 171.005 or any other law, the
requirements of this subchapter shall be enforced exclusively
through the private civil actions described in Section 171.208. No
enforcement of this subchapter, and no enforcement of Chapters 19
and 22, Penal Code, in response to violations of this subchapter,
may be taken or threatened by this state, a political subdivision, a
district or county attorney, or an executive or administrative
officer or employee of this state or a political subdivision
against any person, except as provided in Section 171.208.
(b) Subsection (a) may not be construed to:
(1) legalize the conduct prohibited by this subchapter
or by Chapter 6-1/2, Title 71, Revised Statutes;
(2) limit in any way or affect the availability of a
remedy established by Section 171.208; or
(3) limit the enforceability of any other laws that
regulate or prohibit abortion.
Sec. 171.208. CIVIL LIABILITY FOR VIOLATION OR AIDING OR
ABETTING VIOLATION. (a) Any person, other than an officer or
employee of a state or local governmental entity in this state, may
bring a civil action against any person who:
(1) performs or induces an abortion in violation of
this subchapter;
(2) knowingly engages in conduct that aids or abets
the performance or inducement of an abortion, including paying for
or reimbursing the costs of an abortion through insurance or
otherwise, if the abortion is performed or induced in violation of
this subchapter, regardless of whether the person knew or should
have known that the abortion would be performed or induced in
violation of this subchapter; or
(3) intends to engage in the conduct described by
Subdivision (1) or (2).
(b) If a claimant prevails in an action brought under this
section, the court shall award:
(1) injunctive relief sufficient to prevent the
defendant from violating this subchapter or engaging in acts that
aid or abet violations of this subchapter;
(2) statutory damages in an amount of not less than
$10,000 for each abortion that the defendant performed or induced
in violation of this subchapter, and for each abortion performed or
induced in violation of this subchapter that the defendant aided or
abetted; and
(3) costs and attorney's fees.
(c) Notwithstanding Subsection (b), a court may not award
relief under this section in response to a violation of Subsection
(a)(1) or (2) if the defendant demonstrates that the defendant
previously paid the full amount of statutory damages under
Subsection (b)(2) in a previous action for that particular abortion
performed or induced in violation of this subchapter, or for the
particular conduct that aided or abetted an abortion performed or
induced in violation of this subchapter.
(d) Notwithstanding Chapter 16, Civil Practice and Remedies
Code, or any other law, a person may bring an action under this
section not later than the fourth anniversary of the date the cause
of action accrues.
(e) Notwithstanding any other law, the following are not a
defense to an action brought under this section:
(1) ignorance or mistake of law;
(2) a defendant's belief that the requirements of this
subchapter are unconstitutional or were unconstitutional;
(3) a defendant's reliance on any court decision that
has been overruled on appeal or by a subsequent court, even if that
court decision had not been overruled when the defendant engaged in
conduct that violates this subchapter;
(4) a defendant's reliance on any state or federal
court decision that is not binding on the court in which the action
has been brought;
(5) non-mutual issue preclusion or non-mutual claim
preclusion;
(6) the consent of the unborn child's mother to the
abortion; or
(7) any claim that the enforcement of this subchapter
or the imposition of civil liability against the defendant will
violate the constitutional rights of third parties, except as
provided by Section 171.209.
(f) It is an affirmative defense if:
(1) a person sued under Subsection (a)(2) reasonably
believed, after conducting a reasonable investigation, that the
physician performing or inducing the abortion had complied or would
comply with this subchapter; or
(2) a person sued under Subsection (a)(3) reasonably
believed, after conducting a reasonable investigation, that the
physician performing or inducing the abortion will comply with this
subchapter.
(f-1) The defendant has the burden of proving an affirmative
defense under Subsection (f)(1) or (2) by a preponderance of the
evidence.
(g) This section may not be construed to impose liability on
any speech or conduct protected by the First Amendment of the United
States Constitution, as made applicable to the states through the
United States Supreme Court's interpretation of the Fourteenth
Amendment of the United States Constitution, or by Section 8,
Article I, Texas Constitution.
(h) Notwithstanding any other law, this state, a state
official, or a district or county attorney may not intervene in an
action brought under this section. This subsection does not
prohibit a person described by this subsection from filing an
amicus curiae brief in the action.
(i) Notwithstanding any other law, a court may not award
costs or attorney's fees under the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure or
any other rule adopted by the supreme court under Section 22.004,
Government Code, to a defendant in an action brought under this
section.
(j) Notwithstanding any other law, a civil action under this
section may not be brought by a person who impregnated the abortion
patient through an act of rape, sexual assault, incest, or any other
act prohibited by Sections 22.011, 22.021, or 25.02, Penal Code.
Sec. 171.209. CIVIL LIABILITY: UNDUE BURDEN DEFENSE
LIMITATIONS. (a) A defendant against whom an action is brought
under Section 171.208 does not have standing to assert the rights of
women seeking an abortion as a defense to liability under that
section unless:
(1) the United States Supreme Court holds that the
courts of this state must confer standing on that defendant to
assert the third-party rights of women seeking an abortion in state
court as a matter of federal constitutional law; or
(2) the defendant has standing to assert the rights of
women seeking an abortion under the tests for third-party standing
established by the United States Supreme Court.
(b) A defendant in an action brought under Section 171.208
may assert an affirmative defense to liability under this section
if:
(1) the defendant has standing to assert the
third-party rights of a woman or group of women seeking an abortion
in accordance with Subsection (a); and
(2) the defendant demonstrates that the relief sought
by the claimant will impose an undue burden on that woman or that
group of women seeking an abortion.
(c) A court may not find an undue burden under Subsection
(b) unless the defendant introduces evidence proving that:
(1) an award of relief will prevent a woman or a group
of women from obtaining an abortion; or
(2) an award of relief will place a substantial
obstacle in the path of a woman or a group of women who are seeking
an abortion.
(d) A defendant may not establish an undue burden under this
section by:
(1) merely demonstrating that an award of relief will
prevent women from obtaining support or assistance, financial or
otherwise, from others in their effort to obtain an abortion; or
(2) arguing or attempting to demonstrate that an award
of relief against other defendants or other potential defendants
will impose an undue burden on women seeking an abortion.
(e) The affirmative defense under Subsection (b) is not
available if the United States Supreme Court overrules Roe v. Wade,
410 U.S. 113 (1973) or Planned Parenthood v. Casey, 505 U.S. 833
(1992), regardless of whether the conduct on which the cause of
action is based under Section 171.208 occurred before the Supreme
Court overruled either of those decisions.
(f) Nothing in this section shall in any way limit or
preclude a defendant from asserting the defendant's personal
constitutional rights as a defense to liability under Section
171.208, and a court may not award relief under Section 171.208 if
the conduct for which the defendant has been sued was an exercise of
state or federal constitutional rights that personally belong to
the defendant.
Sec. 171.210. CIVIL LIABILITY: VENUE.
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, including Section 15.002,
Civil Practice and Remedies Code, a civil action brought under
Section 171.208 shall be brought in:
(1) the county in which all or a substantial part of
the events or omissions giving rise to the claim occurred;
(2) the county of residence for any one of the natural
person defendants at the time the cause of action accrued;
(3) the county of the principal office in this state of
any one of the defendants that is not a natural person; or
(4) the county of residence for the claimant if the
claimant is a natural person residing in this state.
(b) If a civil action is brought under Section 171.208 in
any one of the venues described by Subsection (a), the action may
not be transferred to a different venue without the written consent
of all parties.
Sec. 171.211. SOVEREIGN, GOVERNMENTAL, AND OFFICIAL
IMMUNITY PRESERVED. (a) This section prevails over any
conflicting law, including:
(1) the Uniform Declaratory Judgments Act; and
(2) Chapter 37, Civil Practice and Remedies Code.
(b) This state has sovereign immunity, a political
subdivision has governmental immunity, and each officer and
employee of this state or a political subdivision has official
immunity in any action, claim, or counterclaim or any type of legal
or equitable action that challenges the validity of any provision
or application of this chapter, on constitutional grounds or
otherwise.
(c) A provision of state law may not be construed to waive or
abrogate an immunity described by Subsection (b) unless it
expressly waives immunity under this section.
Sec. 171.212. SEVERABILITY. (a) Mindful of Leavitt v.
Jane L.
the severability of a state statute regulating abortion the United
States Supreme Court held that an explicit statement of legislative
intent is controlling, it is the intent of the legislature that
every provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or
word in this chapter, and every application of the provisions in
this chapter, are severable from each other.
(b) If any application of any provision in this chapter to
any person, group of persons, or circumstances is found by a court
to be invalid or unconstitutional, the remaining applications of
that provision to all other persons and circumstances shall be
severed and may not be affected. All constitutionally valid
applications of this chapter shall be severed from any applications
that a court finds to be invalid, leaving the valid applications in
force, because it is the legislature's intent and priority that the
valid applications be allowed to stand alone. Even if a reviewing
court finds a provision of this chapter to impose an undue burden in
a large or substantial fraction of relevant cases, the applications
that do not present an undue burden shall be severed from the
remaining applications and shall remain in force, and shall be
treated as if the legislature had enacted a statute limited to the
persons, group of persons, or circumstances for which the statute's
application does not present an undue burden.
(b-1) If any court declares or finds a provision of this
chapter facially unconstitutional, when discrete applications of
that provision can be enforced against a person, group of persons,
or circumstances without violating the United States Constitution
and Texas Constitution, those applications shall be severed from
all remaining applications of the provision, and the provision
shall be interpreted as if the legislature had enacted a provision
limited to the persons, group of persons, or circumstances for
which the provision's application will not violate the United
States Constitution and Texas Constitution.
(c) The legislature further declares that it would have
enacted this chapter, and each provision, section, subsection,
sentence, clause, phrase, or word, and all constitutional
applications of this chapter, irrespective of the fact that any
provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or word,
or applications of this chapter, were to be declared
unconstitutional or to represent an undue burden.
(d) If any provision of this chapter is found by any court to
be unconstitutionally vague, then the applications of that
provision that do not present constitutional vagueness problems
shall be severed and remain in force.
(e) No court may decline to enforce the severability
requirements of Subsections (a), (b), (b-1), (c), and (d) on the
ground that severance would rewrite the statute or involve the
court in legislative or lawmaking activity. A court that declines
to enforce or enjoins a state official from enforcing a statutory
provision does not rewrite a statute, as the statute continues to
contain the same words as before the court's decision. A judicial
injunction or declaration of unconstitutionality:
(1) is nothing more than an edict prohibiting
enforcement that may subsequently be vacated by a later court if
that court has a different understanding of the requirements of the
Texas Constitution or United States Constitution;
(2) is not a formal amendment of the language in a
statute; and
(3) no more rewrites a statute than a decision by the
executive not to enforce a duly enacted statute in a limited and
defined set of circumstances.
SECTION 4. Chapter 30, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is
amended by adding Section 30.022 to read as follows:
Sec. 30.022. AWARD OF ATTORNEY'S FEES IN ACTIONS
CHALLENGING ABORTION LAWS. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, any
person, including an entity, attorney, or law firm, who seeks
declaratory or injunctive relief to prevent this state, a political
subdivision, any governmental entity or public official in this
state, or any person in this state from enforcing any statute,
ordinance, rule, regulation, or any other type of law that
regulates or restricts abortion or that limits taxpayer funding for
individuals or entities that perform or promote abortions, in any
state or federal court, or that represents any litigant seeking
such relief in any state or federal court, is jointly and severally
liable to pay the costs and attorney's fees of the prevailing party.
(b) For purposes of this section, a party is considered a
prevailing party if a state or federal court:
(1) dismisses any claim or cause of action brought
against the party that seeks the declaratory or injunctive relief
described by Subsection (a), regardless of the reason for the
dismissal; or
(2) enters judgment in the party's favor on any such
claim or cause of action.
(c) Regardless of whether a prevailing party sought to
recover costs or attorney's fees in the underlying action, a
prevailing party under this section may bring a civil action to
recover costs and attorney's fees against a person, including an
entity, attorney, or law firm, that sought declaratory or
injunctive relief described by Subsection (a) not later than the
third anniversary of the date on which, as applicable:
(1) the dismissal or judgment described by Subsection
(b) becomes final on the conclusion of appellate review; or
(2) the time for seeking appellate review expires.
(d) It is not a defense to an action brought under
Subsection (c) that:
(1) a prevailing party under this section failed to
seek recovery of costs or attorney's fees in the underlying action;
(2) the court in the underlying action declined to
recognize or enforce the requirements of this section; or
(3) the court in the underlying action held that any
provisions of this section are invalid, unconstitutional, or
preempted by federal law, notwithstanding the doctrines of issue or
claim preclusion.
SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 311, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 311.036 to read as follows:
Sec. 311.036. CONSTRUCTION OF ABORTION STATUTES. (a) A
statute that regulates or prohibits abortion may not be construed
to repeal any other statute that regulates or prohibits abortion,
either wholly or partly, unless the repealing statute explicitly
states that it is repealing the other statute.
(b) A statute may not be construed to restrict a political
subdivision from regulating or prohibiting abortion in a manner
that is at least as stringent as the laws of this state unless the
statute explicitly states that political subdivisions are
prohibited from regulating or prohibiting abortion in the manner
described by the statute.
(c) Every statute that regulates or prohibits abortion is
severable in each of its applications to every person and
circumstance. If any statute that regulates or prohibits abortion
is found by any court to be unconstitutional, either on its face or
as applied, then all applications of that statute that do not
violate the United States Constitution and Texas Constitution shall
be severed from the unconstitutional applications and shall remain
enforceable, notwithstanding any other law, and the statute shall
be interpreted as if containing language limiting the statute's
application to the persons, group of persons, or circumstances for
which the statute's application will not violate the United States
Constitution and Texas Constitution.
SECTION 6. Section 171.005, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 171.005. COMMISSION [DEPARTMENT] TO ENFORCE;
EXCEPTION. The commission [department] shall enforce this chapter
except for Subchapter H, which shall be enforced exclusively
through the private civil enforcement actions described by Section
171.208 and may not be enforced by the commission.
SECTION 7. Subchapter A, Chapter 171, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 171.008 to read as follows:
Sec. 171.008. REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION. (a) If an abortion
is performed or induced on a pregnant woman because of a medical
emergency, the physician who performs or induces the abortion shall
execute a written document that certifies the abortion is necessary
due to a medical emergency and specifies the woman's medical
condition requiring the abortion.
(b) A physician shall:
(1) place the document described by Subsection (a) in
the pregnant woman's medical record; and
(2) maintain a copy of the document described by
Subsection (a) in the physician's practice records.
(c) A physician who performs or induces an abortion on a
pregnant woman shall:
(1) if the abortion is performed or induced to
preserve the health of the pregnant woman, execute a written
document that:
(A) specifies the medical condition the abortion
is asserted to address; and
(B) provides the medical rationale for the
physician's conclusion that the abortion is necessary to address
the medical condition; or
(2) for an abortion other than an abortion described
by Subdivision (1), specify in a written document that maternal
health is not a purpose of the abortion.
(d) The physician shall maintain a copy of a document
described by Subsection (c) in the physician's practice records.
SECTION 8. Section 171.012(a), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) Consent to an abortion is voluntary and informed only
if:
(1) the physician who is to perform or induce the
abortion informs the pregnant woman on whom the abortion is to be
performed or induced of:
(A) the physician's name;
(B) the particular medical risks associated with
the particular abortion procedure to be employed, including, when
medically accurate:
(i) the risks of infection and hemorrhage;
(ii) the potential danger to a subsequent
pregnancy and of infertility; and
(iii) the possibility of increased risk of
breast cancer following an induced abortion and the natural
protective effect of a completed pregnancy in avoiding breast
cancer;
(C) the probable gestational age of the unborn
child at the time the abortion is to be performed or induced; and
(D) the medical risks associated with carrying
the child to term;
(2) the physician who is to perform or induce the
abortion or the physician's agent informs the pregnant woman that:
(A) medical assistance benefits may be available
for prenatal care, childbirth, and neonatal care;
(B) the father is liable for assistance in the
support of the child without regard to whether the father has
offered to pay for the abortion; and
(C) public and private agencies provide
pregnancy prevention counseling and medical referrals for
obtaining pregnancy prevention medications or devices, including
emergency contraception for victims of rape or incest;
(3) the physician who is to perform or induce the
abortion or the physician's agent:
(A) provides the pregnant woman with the printed
materials described by Section 171.014; and
(B) informs the pregnant woman that those
materials:
(i) have been provided by the commission
[Department of State Health Services];
(ii) are accessible on an Internet website
sponsored by the commission [department];
(iii) describe the unborn child and list
agencies that offer alternatives to abortion; and
(iv) include a list of agencies that offer
sonogram services at no cost to the pregnant woman;
(4) before any sedative or anesthesia is administered
to the pregnant woman and at least 24 hours before the abortion or
at least two hours before the abortion if the pregnant woman waives
this requirement by certifying that she currently lives 100 miles
or more from the nearest abortion provider that is a facility
licensed under Chapter 245 or a facility that performs more than 50
abortions in any 12-month period:
(A) the physician who is to perform or induce the
abortion or an agent of the physician who is also a sonographer
certified by a national registry of medical sonographers performs a
sonogram on the pregnant woman on whom the abortion is to be
performed or induced;
(B) the physician who is to perform or induce the
abortion displays the sonogram images in a quality consistent with
current medical practice in a manner that the pregnant woman may
view them;
(C) the physician who is to perform or induce the
abortion provides, in a manner understandable to a layperson, a
verbal explanation of the results of the sonogram images, including
a medical description of the dimensions of the embryo or fetus, the
presence of cardiac activity, and the presence of external members
and internal organs; and
(D) the physician who is to perform or induce the
abortion or an agent of the physician who is also a sonographer
certified by a national registry of medical sonographers makes
audible the heart auscultation for the pregnant woman to hear, if
present, in a quality consistent with current medical practice and
provides, in a manner understandable to a layperson, a simultaneous
verbal explanation of the heart auscultation;
(5) before receiving a sonogram under Subdivision
(4)(A) and before the abortion is performed or induced and before
any sedative or anesthesia is administered, the pregnant woman
completes and certifies with her signature an election form that
states as follows:
"ABORTION AND SONOGRAM ELECTION
(1) THE INFORMATION AND PRINTED MATERIALS DESCRIBED BY
SECTIONS 171.012(a)(1)-(3), TEXAS HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE, HAVE BEEN
PROVIDED AND EXPLAINED TO ME.
(2) I UNDERSTAND THE NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES OF AN
ABORTION.
(3) TEXAS LAW REQUIRES THAT I RECEIVE A SONOGRAM PRIOR
TO RECEIVING AN ABORTION.
(4) I UNDERSTAND THAT I HAVE THE OPTION TO VIEW THE
SONOGRAM IMAGES.
(5) I UNDERSTAND THAT I HAVE THE OPTION TO HEAR THE
HEARTBEAT.
(6) I UNDERSTAND THAT I AM REQUIRED BY LAW TO HEAR AN
EXPLANATION OF THE SONOGRAM IMAGES UNLESS I CERTIFY IN WRITING TO
ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
___ I AM PREGNANT AS A RESULT OF A SEXUAL ASSAULT,
INCEST, OR OTHER VIOLATION OF THE TEXAS PENAL CODE THAT HAS BEEN
REPORTED TO LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES OR THAT HAS NOT BEEN
REPORTED BECAUSE I REASONABLY BELIEVE THAT DOING SO WOULD PUT ME AT
RISK OF RETALIATION RESULTING IN SERIOUS BODILY INJURY.
___ I AM A MINOR AND OBTAINING AN ABORTION IN ACCORDANCE
WITH JUDICIAL BYPASS PROCEDURES UNDER CHAPTER 33, TEXAS FAMILY
CODE.
___ MY UNBORN CHILD [FETUS] HAS AN IRREVERSIBLE MEDICAL
CONDITION OR ABNORMALITY, AS IDENTIFIED BY RELIABLE DIAGNOSTIC
PROCEDURES AND DOCUMENTED IN MY MEDICAL FILE.
(7) I AM MAKING THIS ELECTION OF MY OWN FREE WILL AND
WITHOUT COERCION.
(8) FOR A WOMAN WHO LIVES 100 MILES OR MORE FROM THE
NEAREST ABORTION PROVIDER THAT IS A FACILITY LICENSED UNDER CHAPTER
245, TEXAS HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE, OR A FACILITY THAT PERFORMS MORE
THAN 50 ABORTIONS IN ANY 12-MONTH PERIOD ONLY:
I CERTIFY THAT, BECAUSE I CURRENTLY LIVE 100 MILES OR
MORE FROM THE NEAREST ABORTION PROVIDER THAT IS A FACILITY LICENSED
UNDER CHAPTER 245 OR A FACILITY THAT PERFORMS MORE THAN 50 ABORTIONS
IN ANY 12-MONTH PERIOD, I WAIVE THE REQUIREMENT TO WAIT 24 HOURS
AFTER THE SONOGRAM IS PERFORMED BEFORE RECEIVING THE ABORTION
PROCEDURE. MY PLACE OF RESIDENCE IS:__________.
________________________________________
SIGNATURE DATE";
(6) before the abortion is performed or induced, the
physician who is to perform or induce the abortion receives a copy
of the signed, written certification required by Subdivision (5);
and
(7) the pregnant woman is provided the name of each
person who provides or explains the information required under this
subsection.
SECTION 9. Section 245.011(c), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(c) The report must include:
(1) whether the abortion facility at which the
abortion is performed is licensed under this chapter;
(2) the patient's year of birth, race, marital status,
and state and county of residence;
(3) the type of abortion procedure;
(4) the date the abortion was performed;
(5) whether the patient survived the abortion, and if
the patient did not survive, the cause of death;
(6) the probable post-fertilization age of the unborn
child based on the best medical judgment of the attending physician
at the time of the procedure;
(7) the date, if known, of the patient's last menstrual
cycle;
(8) the number of previous live births of the patient;
[and]
(9) the number of previous induced abortions of the
patient;
(10) whether the abortion was performed or induced
because of a medical emergency and any medical condition of the
pregnant woman that required the abortion; and
(11) the information required under Sections
171.008(a) and (c).
SECTION 10. Every provision in this Act and every
application of the provision in this Act are severable from each
other. If any provision or application of any provision in this Act
to any person, group of persons, or circumstance is held by a court
to be invalid, the invalidity does not affect the other provisions
or applications of this Act.
SECTION 11. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to an abortion performed or induced on or after the effective date
of this Act.
SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 8 passed the Senate on
March 30, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 19, Nays 12; and that
the Senate concurred in House amendments on May 13, 2021, by the
following vote: Yeas 18, Nays 12.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 8 passed the House, with
amendments, on May 6, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 83,
Nays 64, one present not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
______________________________
Date
______________________________
Governor