Gov. Abbott Announces HHSC Referral In Birth Tourism Investigation

AUSTIN, TX — Gov. Greg Abbott announced Tuesday that the Texas Health and Human Services Commission has referred an alleged birth tourism scheme involving two Texas hospitals to the Office of the Attorney General following an investigation ordered by the governor.

Abbott said the referral came one day after he directed HHSC to investigate birth tourism packages marketed to foreign nationals.

“I am pleased that HHSC took decisive action based on my directive last week,” Abbott said. “Regardless of what the Supreme Court of the United States may have said, U.S. citizenship is not for sale in Texas. Texas will not tolerate the exploitation of our health care system as a pathway to skirt federal immigration laws.”

Last week, Abbott ordered HHSC to investigate birth tourism packages allegedly promoted by Mission Regional Medical Center. He also directed the agency to refer any violations of state law to the Office of the Attorney General for civil enforcement and to the appropriate district or county attorney for possible criminal prosecution.

According to the governor's office, HHSC submitted a referral to the attorney general the following day based on publicly available evidence linking two Texas hospitals to a birth tourism operation advertised through the website "havemybabyinTEXAS.com."

The governor said Texas will continue efforts to stop birth tourism schemes and hold accountable any hospitals or facilities found to be profiting from them.

Abbott encouraged Texans to report similar schemes to the HHSC Office of Inspector General. He also advised anyone with information about potential federal violations, including immigration-related matters, to contact the U.S. Department of Justice or the appropriate U.S. Attorney's Office in Texas.