Texas House Passes Bounty-Hunter Abortion Pill Ban

Texas House Bill 7 (HB 7), also known as the "Women and Children Protection Act," would allow private citizens to sue out-of-state doctors, distributors, and manufacturers of abortion pills for $100,000 per violation, using a citizen enforcement mechanism similar to the 2021 six-week abortion ban. The bill exempts pregnant women from liability and shields hospitals and doctors providing abortion medications for legal medical reasons in Texas, but it targets anyone who mails or provides abortion pills to Texas residents, even those outside the state. Critics, including the ACLU and abortion rights advocates, describe the law as a "bounty-hunting scheme" that could encourage activists to exploit a charity loophole to stage sting operations and profit from lawsuits, potentially chilling access to abortion pills and related medical care. Supporters, including the bill’s author Rep. Jeff Leach, argue the law protects unborn life and women from the alleged harms of abortion pills, despite clinical data showing these medications are safe and effective. The legislation aims to circumvent protections in blue states and has raised concerns from medical groups about unintended consequences for treatments involving abortion medications. HB 7 is expected to pass the GOP-controlled Texas Senate and faces ongoing legal challenges similar to those against Senate Bill 8, with fears it would further restrict one of the few remaining abortion options in Texas, especially harming rural women with limited healthcare access.