By: Patrick  S.B. No. 1790
         (In the Senate - Filed March 11, 2011; March 23, 2011, read
  first time and referred to Committee on Health and Human Services;
  May 13, 2011, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
  Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 5, Nays 2; May 13, 2011,
  sent to printer.)
 
  COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1790 By:  Patrick
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
 
  relating to distributing or prescribing abortion-inducing drugs;
  providing an administrative penalty.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Chapter 171, Health and Safety Code, is amended
  by adding Subchapter D to read as follows:
  SUBCHAPTER D.  ABORTION-INDUCING DRUGS
         Sec. 171.081.  DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
               (1)  "Abortion" means the act of using or prescribing
  an instrument, a medicine, a drug, or any other substance, device,
  or means with the intent to terminate a clinically diagnosable
  pregnancy of a woman and with knowledge that the termination by
  those means will, with reasonable likelihood, cause the death of
  the woman's unborn child. An act is not an abortion if the act is
  done with the intent to:
                     (A)  save the life or preserve the health of an
  unborn child;
                     (B)  remove a dead unborn child whose death was
  caused by spontaneous abortion;
                     (C)  remove an ectopic pregnancy; or
                     (D)  treat a maternal disease or illness for which
  the prescribed drug is indicated.
               (2)  "Abortion-inducing drug" means a medicine, a drug,
  or any other substance prescribed or dispensed with the intent of
  terminating a clinically diagnosable pregnancy of a woman and with
  knowledge that the termination will, with reasonable likelihood,
  cause the death of the woman's unborn child. The term includes
  off-label use of drugs known to have abortion-inducing properties
  that are prescribed with the intent of causing an abortion,
  including misoprostol and methotrexate. The term does not include
  a drug that may be known to cause an abortion but is prescribed for
  other medical reasons.
               (3)  "Drug label" means a pamphlet accompanying an
  abortion-inducing drug that:
                     (A)  outlines the protocol tested and authorized
  by the United States Food and Drug Administration and agreed to by
  the drug company applying for authorization of the drug by that
  agency; and
                     (B)  delineates how a drug is to be used according
  to approval by that agency.
               (4)  "Gestational age" means the amount of time that
  has elapsed since the first day of a woman's last menstrual period.
               (5)  "Medical abortion" means the use of
  abortion-inducing drugs to induce an abortion.
               (6)  "Physician" means an individual who is licensed to
  practice medicine in this state, including a medical doctor and a
  doctor of osteopathic medicine.
               (7)  "Pregnant" means the female reproductive
  condition of having an unborn child in a woman's uterus.
               (8)  "Unborn child" means an offspring of human beings
  from conception until birth.
         Sec. 171.082.  ENFORCEMENT BY TEXAS MEDICAL BOARD.  
  Notwithstanding Section 171.005, the Texas Medical Board shall
  enforce this subchapter.
         Sec. 171.083.  DISTRIBUTION OF ABORTION-INDUCING DRUG.
  (a)  A person may not knowingly give, sell, dispense, administer,
  provide, or prescribe an abortion-inducing drug to a pregnant woman
  for the purpose of inducing an abortion in the pregnant woman or
  enabling another person to induce an abortion in the pregnant woman
  unless:
               (1)  the person who gives, sells, dispenses,
  administers, provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug is
  a physician; and
               (2)  the provision or prescription of the
  abortion-inducing drug satisfies the protocol tested and
  authorized by the United States Food and Drug Administration as
  outlined in the abortion-inducing drug's drug label.
         (b)  Before the physician gives, sells, dispenses,
  administers, provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug,
  the physician must examine the pregnant woman and document, in the
  woman's medical record, the gestational age and intrauterine
  location of the pregnancy.
         (c)  The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
  provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug shall provide
  the pregnant woman with a copy of the abortion-inducing drug's drug
  label.
         (d)  The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
  provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug must:
               (1)  have a signed contract with another physician who
  agrees to treat emergencies arising from use of the drug; and
               (2)  produce the signed contract on demand by the
  pregnant woman or the Texas Medical Board.
         (e)  The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
  provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug shall provide
  the pregnant woman with the name and phone number of:
               (1)  the physician who would treat an emergency arising
  from use of the drug; and
               (2)  the hospital at which an emergency arising from
  use of the drug would be treated.
         (f)  A physician who contracts to treat an emergency arising
  from use of an abortion-inducing drug must have active admitting,
  gynecological, and surgical privileges at the hospital designated
  to treat the emergency.
         (g)  The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
  provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug, or the
  physician's agent, must schedule a follow-up visit for the woman to
  occur not more than 14 days after the administration of the drug.
  At the follow-up visit, the physician must:
               (1)  confirm that the pregnancy is completely
  terminated; and
               (2)  assess the degree of bleeding.
         (h)  The physician who gives, sells, dispenses, administers,
  provides, or prescribes the abortion-inducing drug, or the
  physician's agent, shall make a reasonable effort to ensure that
  the woman returns for the scheduled appointment. The physician or
  the physician's agent shall include a brief description of any
  effort made to comply with this subsection, including the date,
  time, and name of the person making the effort, in the woman's
  medical record.
         (i)  If a physician provides an abortion-inducing drug to a
  pregnant woman for the purpose of inducing an abortion as
  authorized by this section and the physician knows that the woman
  experiences a serious adverse event, as defined by the MedWatch
  Reporting System, during or after using the drug, the physician
  shall report the event to the United States Food and Drug
  Administration through the MedWatch Reporting System within three
  days of the event.
         Sec. 171.084.  ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY. (a)  The Texas
  Medical Board may:
               (1)  take disciplinary action under Chapter 164,
  Occupations Code, against a person who violates Section 171.083; or
               (2)  assess an administrative penalty under Subchapter
  A, Chapter 165, Occupations Code, against a person who violates
  Section 171.083.
         (b)  A penalty may not be assessed under this section against
  a pregnant woman who receives a medical abortion.
         SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
  a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
  provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
  Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
  Act takes effect September 1, 2011.
 
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