Texas Bill Regarding Medical Information Provided in Informational Materials in Women’s Right to Know Act (HB 3745)

HB 3745 would have amended section 171.014 of the Health and Safety Code, the law relating to standards for the medical information provided in the informational materials developed by the Department of State Health Services provided to women seeking abortion.

The law would have required that all information published on the Internet website conform to standards adopted by the National Institute of Health, and its partner organizations. The law also would have replaced the term “unborn child” with “fetus or embryo.”

According to a letter sent to the House State Affairs Committee by the Texas Medical Association, “the use of the term ‘unborn child’ is not appropriate for a health information booklet. A child is a person from birth until the age of legal majority. The proper term for the second to eighth weeks is ’embryo.’ The embryo becomes a fetus at 10 weeks. The term ‘fetus’ is the correct term to use until birth. The term ‘unborn child’ is not used in other DSHS materials.” 

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