Overall Vote Recommendation

Yes

Principle Criteria

Free Enterprise

Property Rights

Personal Responsibility

Limited Government

Individual Liberty

Digest

HB 923 revises the structure and operation of the Texas Medical Disclosure Panel (TMDP), which oversees informed consent disclosures required in medical settings. The bill administratively reassigns the panel from the now-defunct Texas Department of Health to the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), updating agency references to reflect this change throughout the law. The HHSC will provide administrative support and budget processing for the panel, though the panel remains independently responsible for its substantive duties.

The bill expands the panel from nine to thirteen members, adjusting its composition to include three public representatives (one of whom must have health literacy expertise), three attorneys (with balanced experience in patient and provider representation), and seven licensed physicians. It sets new eligibility restrictions for public members, barring lobbyists, health care providers, their spouses, and individuals employed in healthcare-related fields, while giving appointment preference to public interest advocates.

HB 923 also includes procedural safeguards to ensure that actions requiring a vote cannot proceed unless a majority of physician members are present. It reinforces that the panel has no authority to change the legal scope of practice of any healthcare professional. Finally, the bill mandates that new panel members be appointed under these updated criteria by January 1, 2026.

The originally filed version of HB 923 proposed expanding the Texas Medical Disclosure Panel from nine to eleven members. Under this version, the panel’s composition included two public members (one with health literacy expertise), three attorneys (with one attorney board-certified in personal injury trial law and one in health law), and six physicians. The bill also prohibited appointing lobbyists, health care providers, or their spouses as public members and required the panel to avoid any actions that could be interpreted as altering a health care provider’s scope of practice.

In contrast, the Committee Substitute made several substantive changes. It further expanded the panel to thirteen members, adding an additional public member and an additional physician. It also broadened the qualifications for attorney members by removing the requirement for specific board certifications, instead mandating that one attorney represent patients and another represent physicians or health care providers. This change shifts the focus from technical certification to practical advocacy experience.

Another significant addition in the substitute was a new quorum requirement: the disclosure panel cannot take a binding vote unless a majority of its physician members are present. This provision was not present in the original version and ensures that physicians maintain a leading voice in decisions affecting medical disclosures. While both versions preserve limitations on public appointments and scope of practice, the substitute version strengthens physician oversight and shifts professional criteria to favor practical experience over certifications.

Author (2)

Cassandra Garcia Hernandez

Jeff Leach

Sponsor (1)

Cesar Blanco

Contact the Author

Rep. Cassandra Garcia Hernandez

Capitol Phone:

(512) 463-0468

Capitol Office:

EXT E2.712

E-Mail:

[email protected]

Visit Official Website

Fiscal Notes

According to the Legislative Budget Board (LBB), no significant fiscal implications to the state are anticipated as a result of implementing HB 923. The Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), which will provide administrative support to the expanded Texas Medical Disclosure Panel, is expected to absorb any associated costs within its existing resources and budget structure. This indicates that the expansion of panel membership and the new procedural requirements are not expected to necessitate additional appropriations or staff increases.

Similarly, there is no significant fiscal implication for local governments. Because the bill affects the internal administrative structure of a state-level advisory panel and does not impose new requirements on counties, cities, or local health entities, there will be no financial impact at the local government level.

In short, while HB 923 introduces changes to the panel's structure and operation, those changes are expected to be modest enough in cost that they do not require new funding streams or create a burden on state or local government finances.

Vote Recommendation Notes

Texas Policy Research recommends that lawmakers vote YES on HB 923. The bill enhances the Texas Medical Disclosure Panel by expanding its membership to include more public voices, which improves transparency, strengthens patient advocacy, and aligns the panel with modern expectations for public oversight of health-related decision-making. By requiring that public members include individuals experienced in health literacy and public advocacy—and by preventing lobbyists or health industry insiders from serving—the bill takes strong steps toward ensuring that patients’ interests are better represented.

Although the bill technically grows the size and structure of government by increasing the panel from nine to thirteen members, this expansion is justified by the significant improvement in accountability and transparency. Importantly, the Legislative Budget Board found that no significant new cost to taxpayers is expected at this time, and the bill does not create new regulatory burdens for individuals or businesses. It also wisely ensures that the panel cannot interfere with physicians' professional practice rights.

Because the modest growth in government serves the higher goals of individual liberty, transparency, and limited regulatory overreach, the bill supports key liberty principles and earns a Yes vote recommendation.

Individual Liberty: By adding public members focused on patient advocacy and health literacy, the bill empowers individuals to have a stronger voice in how medical disclosure rules are shaped. Patients gain better protection for their right to informed consent.
Personal Responsibility: By clarifying the disclosure process and emphasizing transparency, the bill helps ensure that individuals (patients and providers) can make better-informed and more responsible decisions regarding medical care.
Free Enterprise: The bill does not impose new restrictions on private healthcare businesses. It actually protects the healthcare marketplace by preventing the panel from expanding or regulating doctors’ legal scope of practice.
Private Property Rights: No direct effect. The bill deals with professional practices and public representation, not private property.
Limited Government: The panel grows from nine to thirteen members, slightly expanding government. However, this growth is narrowly focused on increasing transparency and public protection, not on expanding regulatory power. No new mandates, fees, or business regulations are created.

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