The Texas Health and Human Services Commission has referred an apparent birth tourism scheme involving two South Texas hospitals to Attorney General Ken Paxton, shortly after Gov. Greg Abbott ordered the agency to investigate the matter.
“I am pleased that HHSC took decisive action based on my directive last week,” Abbott said in a statement. “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 directed HHSC to investigate Mission Regional Medical Center after reports that it had marketed “Birth Packages in South Texas” to foreign nationals. He instructed the agency to refer any violations of state law to the attorney general for civil enforcement and to local prosecutors for potential criminal prosecution.
HHSC submitted a referral to the attorney general the following day after reviewing publicly available evidence connecting Mission Regional Medical Center and Knapp Medical Center—both affiliated with Prime Healthcare Foundation—to the website HaveMyBabyInTexas.com, which advertised birth tourism packages to foreign nationals.
The referral letter states that HHSC reviewed online reports, social media posts, and an archived version of the website, which identified Mission Regional Medical Center in Mission and Knapp Medical Center in Weslaco as participating hospitals.
Although the website has since been taken offline, HHSC said archived versions remained available and warranted further investigation.
Photos of a billboard displayed in Mexico advertising “Birth Packages in South Texas” through the website circulated widely on social media earlier this month, drawing scrutiny from state officials and prompting Abbott’s investigation.
In the referral, HHSC Chief Counsel Karen Ray told Paxton’s office that the allegations are “equally troubling” to another birth tourism operation already being challenged by the state and requested that the attorney general investigate the matter and pursue any appropriate legal action.
Birth tourism refers to the practice of foreign nationals traveling to the United States primarily so their children receive American citizenship by being born on U.S. soil.
Earlier this year, Paxton sued a Houston-area birth tourism operation, alleging it helped more than 1,000 Chinese nationals travel to Texas to give birth so their children could obtain U.S. citizenship. The lawsuit alleges the operation coached clients on obtaining visas, assisted with immigration paperwork, and marketed services designed to help foreign nationals secure birthright citizenship.
A hospital spokesperson previously told Texas Scorecard it complies with all applicable federal and state laws and “does not support or facilitate any unlawful activity.” The hospital also said the maternity marketing materials were no longer in use because of “any unintended misunderstanding” and that it intended to cooperate with state and local officials.
Abbott said his administration will continue pursuing hospitals and facilities that profit from birth tourism schemes and encouraged Texans with information about similar operations to report them to the HHSC Office of Inspector General.
