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State Lawmakers to Explore Banning Foreign Nationals From Using Texas Surrogates
Texas lawmakers are weighing a ban that surrogacy experts say could affect only a small share of the state’s thousands of annual births.
On Wednesday, the Texas Senate health committee will hear testimony on potentially banning foreign nationals from contracting with Texas surrogates, elevating fertility services into a broader immigration debate.
The Texas GOP approved a platform ban on commercial surrogacy for foreign nationals last month, framing the practice as a national security threat similar to Florida's recent legislation targeting citizens of designated 'foreign countries of concern' including China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela and Syria.
Dallas-Based Simple Surrogacy estimates less than 20% of its cases involve foreign nationals, with advocates emphasizing clients include cancer survivors, same-sex couples, and those with unexplained infertility seeking safe medical care in the United States.
Surrogacy agencies worry that targeting foreign nationals could restrict access for all Texans. Christine Henry Andresen, an attorney with Austin-based CHA Law Group, warned that 'Texas surrogacy law changes of any kind would likely have a chilling effect on Texans struggling with infertility.'
Amid broader legislative efforts, Attorney General Ken Paxton sued a Houston birthing center in April, claiming it was 'facilitating the invasion of Chinese nationals into Texas for the sole purpose of birthing children,' while Congress considers the Stopping Adversarial Foreign Exploitation of Kids in Domestic Surrogacy Act.