Overview

• The House approved the bill in a party-line vote, sending it to the Republican-led Senate, where a vote is expected next week before it could reach Gov. Greg Abbott.
• HB 7 authorizes private citizens to sue out-of-state prescribers, manufacturers, distributors and couriers that provide or mail abortion medication to people in Texas, while exempting the patient from civil liability.
• Successful claims carry a $100,000 award per violation, but only the pregnant person or close relatives can collect the full amount; other plaintiffs receive $10,000 with the remainder directed to a charity, and courts cannot award attorney fees.
• The bill mirrors SB 8’s private-enforcement model, allows suits even if no abortion occurs or the plaintiff has no connection to the pregnancy, bars certain abusers from suing, and includes privacy protections shielding patients’ identities in filings.
• Hospitals, Texas-based doctors who practice exclusively in-state, and providers dispensing the drugs for emergencies, ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages or stillbirths are shielded, and legal experts expect interstate clashes with blue-state shield laws if it becomes law.