87R10301 TYPED     By: Leach H.B. No. 2313       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to a required resource access assistance offer before an   abortion is performed.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 171, Health and Safety   Code, is amended by adding Section 171.01205 to read as follows:          Sec. 171.01205.  REQUIRED PRE-ABORTION RESOURCE ACCESS   ASSISTANCE OFFER. (a) In addition to the informed consent   requirements under Section 171.012, except during a medical   emergency, and before the abortion is performed, the physician who   is to perform an abortion shall confirm the pregnant woman received   a pre-abortion resource access assistance offer, as required by   this section, by:                (1)  verifying that the unique identifying number   provided to the woman as required by Subsection (d) is recorded in a   secure database maintained by the commission; and                (2)  documenting the pregnant woman's unique   identifying number in the woman's medical record.          (b)  A care agent providing a resource access assistance   offer under this section:                (1)  must be:                      (A)  licensed as a counselor, doctor,   psychologist, social worker, nurse, advanced practice registered   nurse, community health worker, physician's assistant, or marriage   and family therapist; or                      (B)  acting under the supervision of an individual   described by Paragraph (A);                (2)  must not:                      (A)  have performed an abortion in the last two   years;                      (B)  have served as a director, board member,   officer, volunteer, or employee for an abortion facility licensed   under Chapter 245;                (3)  may not refer women to an abortion provider,   recommend abortion, or take any other action that directly or   indirectly advises or assists a woman in obtaining an abortion;                (4)  must be authorized under a contract with the   commission to provide resource access assistance offers and support   services on behalf of this state in accordance with this section;   and                (5)  must complete a training program on identifying   and assisting victims of human trafficking using a standardized   curriculum created by the human trafficking prevention task force   established under Section 402.035, Government Code.          (c)  The resource access assistance offer must be provided by   and on behalf of this state at no cost to the pregnant woman from a   care agent who meets the qualifications described by Subsection   (b). The care agent during a resource access assistance offer shall   provide:                (1)  medically accurate information using the   informational materials described by Section 171.014;                (2)  an assessment of eligibility for and offer of   assistance in obtaining support services other than abortion for   the pregnant woman or unborn child's biological father, including   housing, employment, resume development, child care, prenatal and   postpartum medical care, mental health or behavioral counselling,   adoption services, financial assistance, abuse or neglect   prevention assistance, substance or alcohol abuse prevention   assistance, and health benefit plan coverage;                (3)  education on available public and private   resources to address the pregnant woman's or biological father's   socioeconomic needs; and                (4)  screening for:                      (A)  family violence, abuse, and neglect   victimization;                      (B)  coercion of abortion; and                      (C)  human trafficking victimization.          (d)  After providing the resource access assistance offer,   the care agent or the contracting agency that employs the care agent   shall:                (1)  certify to the commission using a unique   identifying number, devoid of personally identifying information   of the pregnant woman, that the pregnant woman received the   resource access assistance offer; and                (2)  provide to the pregnant woman the identifying   number described by Subdivision (1).          (e)  A care agent shall report to the commission   de-identified demographic information obtained through a resource   access assistance offer provided under this section to assist the   commission in determining the supply and demand of social services   in the pregnant woman's geographic region.          (f)  The commission shall develop and maintain on the   commission's Internet website a secure database to store the unique   identifying numbers provided under Subsection (d) and that allows   the care agent to submit the de-identified information required   under Subsection (e).          (g)  The commission shall establish a single toll-free   telephone number through which a woman seeking an abortion in this   state may receive a resource access assistance offer on a 24-hour   basis. The commission must ensure the placed call automatically   routes the woman to a care agent at a contracting agency to provide   the resource access assistance offer.          (h)  The pregnant woman:                (1)  is not required to provide any information to the   care agent or agency;                (2)  is not required to initiate or complete services   offered under this section in order to obtain an abortion;                (3)  may decline services under this section at any   time; and                (4)  if accepting a resource assistance offer, shall   have the offer available for two calendar years regardless of the   pregnant woman's pregnancy.          SECTION 2.  Section 171.0121, Health and Safety Code, is   amended to read as follows:          Sec. 171.0121.  MEDICAL RECORD. (a)  Before the abortion   begins, a copy of the signed, written certification received by the   physician under Section 171.012(a)(6) and documentation of the   receipt of the resource access assistance offer required under   Section 171.01205 must be placed in the pregnant woman's medical   records.          (b)  A copy of the signed, written certification required   under Sections 171.012(a)(5) and (6) and documentation of the   receipt of the resource access assistance offer required under   Section 171.01205 shall be retained by the facility where the   abortion is performed until:                (1)  the seventh anniversary of the date it is signed;   or                (2)  if the pregnant woman is a minor, the later of:                      (A)  the seventh anniversary of the date it is   signed; or                      (B)  the woman's 21st birthday.          SECTION 3.  (a)  Notwithstanding Section 171.01205, Health   and Safety Code, as added by this Act, and Section 171.0121, Health   and Safety Code, as amended by this Act, a physician is not required   to comply with the changes in law made by this Act before April 1,   2023.          (b)  Not later than August 31, 2022, the executive   commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission shall   adopt rules as necessary to implement this Act.          (c)  Not later than April 1, 2023, the Health and Human   Services Commission shall contract with one or more contracting   agencies that employ care agents throughout this state to provide   the pre-abortion resource access assistance offer and assistance in   obtaining support services described by Section 171.01205, Health   and Safety Code, as added by this Act.          SECTION 4.  The changes in law made by this Act apply only to   an abortion performed on or after April 1, 2023. An abortion   performed before April 1, 2023, is governed by the law applicable to   the abortion immediately before the effective date of this Act, and   that law is continued in effect for that purpose.          SECTION 5.  It is the intent of the legislature that every   provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or word   in this Act, and every application of the provisions in this Act to   each person or entity, are severable from each other. If any   application of any provision in this Act to any person, group of   persons, or circumstances is found by a court to be invalid for any   reason, the remaining applications of that provision to all other   persons and circumstances shall be severed and may not be affected.          SECTION 6.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.