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Tex. Health & Safety Code § 170A.002

PROHIBITED ABORTION; EXCEPTIONS

Applied in 3 court decisions — leading case State of Texas v. Becerra (2024)

Most recently applied in State of Texas v. Becerra (January 2024)

Added by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 800 (H.B. 1280), Sec. 2, eff

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Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.

(a) A person may not knowingly perform, induce, or attempt an abortion.

(b) It is an exception to the application of Subsection (a) that:

(1) the person performing, inducing, or attempting the abortion is a licensed physician; and

(2) in the exercise of reasonable medical judgment, the pregnant female on whom the abortion is performed, induced, or attempted has a life-threatening physical condition aggravated by, caused by, or arising from a pregnancy that places the female at risk of death or poses a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function unless the abortion is performed or induced.

(c) A physician may not take an action authorized under Subsection (b) if, at the time the abortion was performed, induced, or attempted, the person knew the risk of death or a substantial impairment of a major bodily function described by Subsection (b)(2) arose from a claim or diagnosis that the female would engage in conduct that might result in the female's death or in substantial impairment of a major bodily function.

(c-1) For purposes of Subsection (b)(2), if a pregnant woman has a life-threatening physical condition described by Subsection (b)(2), a physician may address a risk described by Subsection (b)(2) before the pregnant female suffers any effects of the risk. Subsection (b)(2) does not require that, before the physician may act:

(1) a risk described by Subsection (b)(2) be imminent;

(2) the pregnant female first suffer physical impairment; or

(3) the physical condition has caused damage to the pregnant female.

(c-2) For the purposes of Subsection (b)(2), "life-threatening" means capable of causing death or potentially fatal. A life-threatening physical condition is not necessarily one actively injuring the patient.

(d) Repealed by Acts 2025, 89th Leg., R.S., Ch. 758 (S.B. 31), Sec. 17(2), eff. June 20, 2025.

Official source: Texas Constitution and Statutes. Reproduced from public-domain Texas statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.