Texas Statutes
Chapter 245 - Abortion Facilities
Section 245.023. Public Information; Toll-Free Telephone Number

Sec. 245.023. PUBLIC INFORMATION; TOLL-FREE TELEPHONE NUMBER. (a) The department on request shall make the following information available to the public:
(1) the status of the license of any abortion facility;
(2) the date of the last inspection of the facility, any violation discovered during that inspection that would pose a health risk to a patient at the facility, any challenge raised by the facility to the allegation that there was a violation, and any corrective action that is acceptable to the department and that is being undertaken by the facility with respect to the violation; and
(3) an administrative or civil penalty imposed against the facility or a physician who provides services at the facility, professional discipline imposed against a physician who provides services at the facility, and any criminal conviction of the facility or a physician who provides services at the facility that is relevant to services provided at the facility.
(b) Subsection (a) does not require the department to provide information that is not in the possession of the department. The Texas Medical Board shall provide to the department information in the possession of the board that the department is required to provide under Subsection (a).
(c) The department shall maintain a toll-free telephone number that a person may call to obtain the information described by Subsection (a).
(d) An abortion facility shall provide to a woman, at the time the woman initially consults the facility, a written statement indicating the number of the toll-free telephone line maintained under Subsection (c). The written statement must be available in English and Spanish and be in substantially the following form:
"(toll-free telephone number)
You have a right to access certain information concerning this abortion facility by using the toll-free telephone number listed above. If you make a call to the number, your identity will remain anonymous. The toll-free telephone line can provide you with the following information:
(1) Whether this abortion facility is licensed by the Texas Department of State Health Services.
(2) The date of the last inspection of this facility by the Texas Department of State Health Services and any violations of law or rules discovered during that inspection that may pose a health risk to you.
(3) Any relevant fine, penalty, or judgment rendered against this facility or a doctor who provides services at this facility."
(e) This section does not authorize the release of the name, address, or phone number of any employee or patient of an abortion facility or of a physician who provides services at an abortion facility.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1120, Sec. 4, eff. Sept. 1, 1997. Renumbered from Sec. 245.017 by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 62, Sec. 19.01(65), eff. Sept. 1, 1999.
Amended by:
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1 (S.B. 219), Sec. 3.0694, eff. April 2, 2015.