House Bill No. 3588 seeks to strengthen patients' rights and enhance consumer protection in Texas healthcare by introducing significant new provisions to the Health and Safety Code. It establishes a new section, 166.012, allowing competent adults to create a written directive that requires their diagnosis and treatment to be conducted solely by a physician, even in cases where they become incompetent or unable to communicate. The bill outlines the necessary steps for executing this directive, including witness presence or notarization, and mandates notification of the attending physician regarding the directive's existence. Additionally, the bill creates a new Subtitle K, titled "Texas Patients' Bill of Rights," which encompasses various rights for patients, such as informed consent, the ability to decline services from nonphysician practitioners, and the right to receive clear documentation and written cost estimates for their treatment.

Furthermore, the bill introduces regulations to prevent deceptive advertising practices in healthcare, prohibiting misleading statements about providers' qualifications and requiring disclosure of relevant licenses or certifications in advertisements. It also amends existing disciplinary action provisions, making violations of the new section grounds for disciplinary measures by regulatory agencies. The bill mandates that these agencies adopt necessary rules to implement the changes by January 1, 2026, with the new regulations taking effect on that date, while the overall bill is set to take effect on September 1, 2025.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: Occupations Code 102.008 (Occupations Code 102)