Latest news with #SB1188
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Gender definition bill passes in Texas Senate, heads to governor
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas senators passed a bill to define 'male' and 'female' in Texas law during a Tuesday floor session that extended into the early morning Wednesday. House Bill 229 defines males as 'an individual whose biological reproductive system is developed to fertilize the ova of a female,' which it defines as an 'individual whosebiological reproductive system is developed to produce ova.' Previous: Senate committee holds late night public comments hearing on gender definition bill These definitions fall mostly in line with another bill that defines male and female, SB 1188. That bill requires Texas' medical providers to record a person's 'biological sex.' The only difference is for males, which SB 1188 defines as having a reproductive system 'developed to produce sperm.' HB 229 also sets certain findings into Texas law, placing men as 'on average, bigger, stronger, and faster than females.' It also 'finds' that 'females more physically vulnerable than males to specific forms of violence, including sexual violence.' Sen. Molly Cook, D-Houston, led a spirited opposition to the bill just before midnight. HB 229 sponsor Sen. Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston, and Cook engaged in over 20 minutes of debate on the Senate floor. A motion was made to record the debate between Middleton and Cook in the legislative journal. It passed without objection. The written record will likely become available following the 89th Legislative Session's close. At around 1 a.m. Wednesday, HB 229 was quickly passed along party lines in the Senate. It dodged the Senate's bill deadline by nearly 24 hours. The law goes into effect Sept. 1 unless Gov. Greg Abbott vetoes the bill. HB 229 mandates that state and local agencies use a binary view of sex when collecting information that identifies the sex of a person. 'A governmental entity that collects vital statistics information that identifies the sex of an individual for the purpose of complying with antidiscrimination laws or for the purpose of gathering public health, crime, economic, or other data shall identify each individual as either male or female,' the bill states. It is unclear how the agencies will make that determination beyond using already issued documents. Opponents of the bill testified before committees in the Texas House of Representatives and Senate that the bill will erase intersex Texans. Intersex people are born with reproductive systems that don't fit within these definitions. 'Each individual is one of two sexes, male or female, and individuals diagnosed with a disorder of sex development or as intersex are not considered to belong to a third sex and must receive accommodations in accordance with state and federal law,' the bill reads. The bill's supporters hold that the bill is a step toward further restrictions on transgender life in Texas. One such restriction is a private spaces ban, which would prevent people from using restrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity. This session's SB 240 attempted such a ban, but died in the House State Affairs Committee. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Texas may require medical records list patients' sex assigned at birth
The Texas House on Thursday approved a bill requiring health agencies to create a new field in medical records for the sex assigned at birth of patients and strict oversight and punishment of health care providers who change records. Senate Bill 1188 encompasses 'multiple components' according to the bill's sponsor, Rep. Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood, including restrictions on health care providers' storage of digital servers and their use of artificial intelligence. Democratic legislators on Thursday, however, largely zeroed in on a provision requiring all health records to include a new segment explicitly listing the sex a patient was assigned at birth and any physical sexual development disorders they may have. SB 1188 is one of several bills moving through the Legislature aimed at restricting the health care of trans Texans, however SB 1188 does have an exemption stating it does not restrict gender identity information from being included in health records. To enforce its provisions, SB 1188 allows the attorney general to file for injunctions against violations of the bill, and would create penalties of up to $250,000 for practices who knowingly violate its provisions. The bill allows for gender markers to be changed for clerical errors or in certain cases for intersex patients. Democratic lawmakers who spoke in opposition of the bill said the required reporting of gender assigned at birth excludes transgender and intersex patients who may be forced to have a gender displayed in their medical records they don't identify as. 'Knowing that documentation choices could trigger a government investigation discourages providers from recording accurate individualized information, especially in complex cases involving gender or sex variation,' Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, said. 'It places fear and legal exposure ahead of best medical practice.' Bonnen provided rebuttals for all of the proposed amendments and ensured opponents of the bill that it would help physicians understand a more complete picture of a patient's medical history. Democratic representatives attempted to derail the bill down through two points of order and then brought a slew of amendments to the floor seeking to blunt some of the bill's requirements, but were unsuccessful. 'Listen, biological sex and medical records is an issue of accuracy, and impacting safe medical care in an acute situation, an emergency could lead to a misdiagnosis,' Bonnen said. 'The whole point of the section of the bill is to ensure the physicians always know the true biological sex from birth, and the language is carefully crafted to allow for exceptions based on other medical conditions.' Bonnen provided his own amendment to the bill expanding the eligibility for those who could be listed as intersex and explicitly stating the bill does not ban AI use by medical professionals. The bill outlines in statute its own definitions of several medical terms including 'sexual development disorder,' male and female. While its definition of female matches that of House Bill 229 — a bill seeking to define male and female across state statute that passed in the House in May — it differs in its definition of what a male is. HB 229 defines a male as someone whose biological reproductive system 'is developed to fertilize the ova of a female,' different from SB 1188's requirement that male systems are 'developed to produce sperm.' Beyond its requirements on reporting biological sex, SB 1188 also gives parents and guardians of minors 'unrestricted access' to the child's medical records unless a court order is in place preventing them from doing so. The bill also requires medical professionals to disclose when they use artificial intelligence for diagnoses and review all AI-created documents. The bill requires one more formal vote in the House, after which it will be sent for approval from the Senate as amended, then will head to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk for his signature. First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!
