By: Vo H.B. No. 4454       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to solicitation of patients and other prohibited marketing   practices and the establishment of the task force on patient   solicitation; increasing criminal penalties.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Subtitle E, Title 2, Health and Safety Code, is   amended by adding Chapter 110 to read as follows:   CHAPTER 110. TASK FORCE ON PATIENT SOLICITATION          Sec. 110.001.  DEFINITION. In this chapter, "task force"   means the task force on patient solicitation created under this   chapter.          Sec. 110.002.  PURPOSE. The task force is established to   study and make recommendations on preventing conduct that violates   Chapter 164 of this code or Chapter 102, Occupations Code, and to   improve enforcement of those chapters.          Sec. 110.003.  MEMBERSHIP. (a) The task force is composed   of eight members as follows:                (1)  four members the executive commissioner appoints;   and                (2)  four members the attorney general appoints.          (b)  Each task force member must have expertise in the field   of health care or advertising.          (c)  Task force members serve without compensation.          Sec. 110.004.  ADMINISTRATIVE ATTACHMENT. The task force is   administratively attached to the commission.          Sec. 110.005.  ACCESS TO INFORMATION; CONFIDENTIALITY OF   PROVIDED INFORMATION. The attorney general and the commission   shall provide the task force with information the task force   requests to allow the task force to fulfill its duties. Information   provided under this section is confidential and is not subject to   disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code.          Sec. 110.006.  REPORT. Not later than December 1 of each   even-numbered year, the task force shall submit to the legislature   a report that includes:                (1)  a summary of civil or criminal actions brought on   behalf of the state and administrative actions by state regulatory   agencies in the preceding biennium for conduct that violates   Chapter 164 of this code or Chapter 102, Occupations Code; and                (2)  legislative recommendations for preventing   conduct that violates Chapter 164 of this code or Chapter 102,   Occupations Code, and improving enforcement of those chapters.          SECTION 2.  Section 164.002, Health and Safety Code, is   amended to read as follows:          Sec. 164.002.  LEGISLATIVE PURPOSE. The purpose of this   chapter is to safeguard the public against fraud, deceit, and   misleading marketing practices and to foster and encourage   competition and fair dealing by mental health facilities and   chemical dependency [treatment] facilities by prohibiting or   restricting practices by which the public has been injured in   connection with the marketing and advertising of mental health   services and the admission of patients. Nothing in this chapter   should be construed to prohibit a mental health facility or   chemical dependency facility from advertising its services in a   general way or promoting its specialized services. However, the   public should be able to clearly distinguish between the marketing   activities of the facility and its clinical functions.          SECTION 3.  Section 164.003(1), Health and Safety Code, is   amended to read as follows:                (1)  "Advertising" or "advertise" means a solicitation   or inducement, through print or electronic media, including radio,   television, the Internet, or direct mail, to purchase the services   provided by a treatment facility.          SECTION 4.  Section 164.006, Health and Safety Code, is   amended to read as follows:          Sec. 164.006.  SOLICITING AND CONTRACTING WITH CERTAIN   REFERRAL SOURCES. A treatment facility or a person employed or   under contract with a treatment facility, if acting on behalf of the   treatment facility, may not:                (1)  contact a referral source or potential client for   the purpose of soliciting, directly or indirectly, a referral of a   patient to the treatment facility without disclosing its soliciting   agent's, employee's, or contractor's affiliation with the treatment   facility;                (2)  offer to provide or provide mental health or   chemical dependency services to a public or private school in this   state, on a part-time or full-time basis, the services of any of its   employees or agents who make, or are in a position to make, a   referral, if the services are provided on an individual basis to   individual students or their families. Nothing herein prohibits a   treatment facility from:                      (A)  offering or providing educational programs   in group settings to public schools in this state if the affiliation   between the educational program and the treatment facility is   disclosed;                      (B)  providing counseling services to a public   school in this state in an emergency or crisis situation if the   services are provided in response to a specific request by a school;   provided that, under no circumstances may a student be referred to   the treatment facility offering the services; or                      (C)  entering into a contract under Section   464.020 with the board of trustees of a school district with a   disciplinary alternative education program, or with the board's   designee, for the provision of chemical dependency treatment   services;                (3)  provide to an entity of state or local government,   on a part-time or full-time basis, the mental health or chemical   dependency services of any of its employees, agents, or contractors   who make or are in a position to make referrals unless:                      (A)  the treatment facility discloses to the   governing authority of the entity:                            (i)  the employee's, agent's, or   contractor's relationship to the facility; and                            (ii)  the fact that the employee, agent, or   contractor might make a referral, if permitted, to the facility;   and                      (B)  the employee, agent, or contractor makes a   referral only if:                            (i)  the treatment facility obtains the   governing authority's authorization in writing for the employee,   agent, or contractor to make the referrals; and                            (ii)  the employee, agent, or contractor   discloses to the prospective patient the employee's, agent's, or   contractor's relationship to the facility at initial contact; [or]                (4)  in relation to intervention and assessment   services, contract with, offer to remunerate, or remunerate a   person who operates an intervention and assessment service that   makes referrals to a treatment facility for inpatient or outpatient   treatment of mental illness or chemical dependency unless the   intervention and assessment service is:                      (A)  operated by a community mental health and   intellectual disability center the commission funds [funded by the   department and the Department of Aging and Disability Services];                      (B)  operated by a county or regional medical   society;                      (C)  a qualified mental health referral service as   defined by Section 164.007; or                      (D)  owned and operated by a nonprofit or   not-for-profit organization offering counseling concerning family   violence, help for runaway children, or rape; or                (5)  contract with a marketing provider who agrees to   provide general referrals or leads for the placement of prospective   patients with a service provider or in a recovery residence through   a call center or Internet website presence, unless the terms of that   contract are disclosed to the prospective patient.          SECTION 5.  Section 164.010, Health and Safety Code, is   amended to read as follows:          Sec. 164.010.  PROHIBITED ACTS. It is a violation of this   chapter, in connection with the marketing of mental health   services, for a person to:                (1)  advertise, expressly or impliedly, the services of   a treatment facility through the use of:                      (A)  promises of cure or guarantees of treatment   results that cannot be substantiated; or                      (B)  any unsubstantiated claims;                (2)  advertise, expressly or impliedly, the   availability of intervention and assessment services unless and   until the services are available and are provided by mental health   professionals licensed or certified to provide the particular   service;                (3)  fail to disclose before soliciting a referral   source or prospective patient to induce a person to use the services   of the treatment facility an affiliation between a treatment   facility and its soliciting agents, employees, or contractors;                (4)  obtain or disclose information considered   confidential by state or federal law regarding a person for the   purpose of soliciting that person to use the services of a treatment   facility unless and until consent is obtained from the person or, in   the case of a minor, the person's parent, managing conservator, or   legal guardian or another person with authority to give that   authorization; [or]                (5)  represent that a referral service is a qualified   mental health referral service unless and until the referral   service complies with Section 164.007;                (6)  make a false or misleading statement or provide   false or misleading information about the facility's services or   location in the facility's advertising media or on its Internet   website; or                (7)  provide a link on the facility's Internet website   that redirects the user to another Internet website containing   false or misleading statements or information described by   Subdivision (6).          SECTION 6.  Section 164.011(a), Health and Safety Code, is   amended to read as follows:          (a)  If it appears that a person is in violation of this   chapter, the attorney general, a district attorney, or a county   attorney may institute an action for injunctive relief to restrain   the person from continuing the violation and for civil penalties of   not less than $2,000 [$1,000] and not more than $25,000 per   violation.          SECTION 7.  Section 102.001, Occupations Code, is amended to   read as follows:          Sec. 102.001.  SOLICITING PATIENTS; OFFENSE. (a) A person   commits an offense if the person knowingly offers to pay or agrees   to accept, directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly any   remuneration in cash or in kind or any benefit or commission to or   from another for securing or soliciting a patient or patronage for   or from a person licensed, certified, or registered by a state   health care regulatory agency.          (b)  Except as provided by Subsection (c), an offense under   this section is a state jail felony [Class A misdemeanor].          (c)  An offense under this section is a felony of the second   [third] degree if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the   person:                (1)  has previously been convicted of an offense under   this section; or                (2)  was employed by a federal, state, or local   government at the time of the offense.          SECTION 8.  Section 102.004, Occupations Code, is amended to   read as follows:          Sec. 102.004.  APPLICABILITY TO ADVERTISING. Section   102.001 does not prohibit advertising, unless the advertising is:                (1)  false, misleading, or deceptive; [or]                (2)  not readily subject to verification, if the   advertising claims professional superiority or the performance of a   professional service in a superior manner; or                (3)  prohibited under Chapter 164, Health and Safety   Code, as applicable.          SECTION 9.  Section 102.006, Occupations Code, is amended to   read as follows:          Sec. 102.006.  FAILURE TO DISCLOSE; OFFENSE. (a) A person   commits an offense if:                (1)  the person, in a manner otherwise permitted under   Section 102.001, accepts remuneration, a benefit, or a commission   to secure or solicit a patient or patronage for a person licensed,   certified, or registered by a state health care regulatory agency;   and                (2)  does not, at the time of initial contact and at the   time of referral, disclose to the patient:                      (A)  the person's affiliation, if any, with the   person for whom the patient is secured or solicited; and                      (B)  that the person will receive, directly or   indirectly, remuneration, a benefit, or a commission for securing   or soliciting the patient.          (b)  Except as provided by Subsection (c), an offense under   this section is a state jail felony [Class A misdemeanor].          (c)  An offense under this section is a felony of the second   [third] degree if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the   person:                (1)  has previously been convicted of an offense under   this section; or                (2)  was employed by a federal, state, or local   government at the time of the offense.          SECTION 10.  Sections 102.051(a), (b), and (c), Occupations   Code, are amended to read as follows:          (a)  A person commits an offense if the person:                (1)  practices the art of healing with or without the   use of medicine; and                (2)  employs or agrees to employ, pays or promises to   pay, or rewards or promises to reward or provide any benefit or   commission to another for soliciting or securing a patient or   patronage.          (b)  A person commits an offense if the person accepts or   agrees to accept anything of value or any benefit or commission for   soliciting or securing a patient or patronage for a person who   practices the art of healing with or without the use of medicine.          (c)  An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor   [punishable by a fine of not less than $100 or more than $200]. Each   violation of this section is a separate offense.          SECTION 11.  The changes in law made by this Act apply only   to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.   An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is   governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,   and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For   purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the   effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred   before that date.          SECTION 12.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.