Senate Bill 31 | Effective: 6-20-25 |
Senate Author: Hughes et al. | Senate Committee: State Affairs |
House Sponsor: Geren et al. | House Committee: Public Health |
Senate Bill 31, the Life of the Mother Act, amends the Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Health and Safety Code, Occupations Code, and Vernon's Civil Statutes to clarify existing medical emergency exceptions to otherwise prohibited abortions based on a physician's reasonable medical judgment and to provide for the development of certain continuing legal and medical education courses regarding the state's abortion laws and medical emergency exceptions. Among other provisions, the bill does the following:
- authorizes a physician to address a pregnant woman's risk of death or substantial impairment of a major bodily function before the woman suffers any effects of the risk and further clarifies when a physician may act if a pregnant woman has a life‑threatening physical condition that poses such a risk;
- establishes that reasonable medical judgment in providing medical treatment to a pregnant female includes removing an ectopic pregnancy and removing a dead, unborn child whose death was caused by spontaneous abortion;
- clarifies and provides uniformity among applicable statutes with respect to what constitutes an ectopic pregnancy and a medical emergency;
- sets out certain activities that do not constitute aiding or abetting under provisions relating to the detection of a fetal heartbeat;
- prohibits the Texas Medical Board from taking action against a physician regarding the performance of an abortion in response to a medical emergency; and
- provides for a comprehensive program of continuing legal education regarding the regulation of abortion in Texas for state‑licensed attorneys and for one or more courses regarding the laws governing pregnancy‑related medical emergencies for physicians licensed in Texas.