Texas House members heard testimony this week that some parents and attorneys have struggled to obtain medical records used in Child Protective Services investigations, despite a 2025 law intended to strengthen parents’ access to those records.
During the Wednesday hearing, lawmakers examined the implementation of House Bill 2071, which was intended to ensure that the department will provide all medical records to parents, including specialty medical opinions and information about conflicting medical conclusions.
House Human Services Committee Chairwoman Lacey Hull (R–Houston) questioned Dr. Michelle Ruda, medical director for the Forensic Assessment Center Network (FACN), on the issue. FACN provides specialty medical consultations in difficult child-abuse investigations, including cases with conflicting medical opinions. The network works closely with the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS).
“Part of that bill was making sure that parents have access to the medical records because that was a consistent problem, and if there are providers within the FACN that are disagreeing with the determination and the medical reason as to why, shouldn’t that be part of what is given to the parents?” Hull asked Ruda.
Ruda responded, noting that “The FACN is for DFPS, and so if anybody wants that medical record, they have to go through DFPS. … We don’t provide that though because it’s not kind of our records to share.”
Hull asked if this meant that the law was not being followed, but Ruda declined to answer. Ruda said that outdated FACN systems might not generate a shareable document when sent to DFPS; and because it is not readily available, parents must be aware of the document’s existence and request it.
Hull noted that, according to the law, medical records are to be readily available to parents without a request.
Brad Scalise, an attorney specializing in CPS cases, described an occurrence when FACN determined there was insufficient information for a diagnosis, but CPS still removed the children and did not report FACN’s findings to the parents.
He said the parents are currently unable to get the FACN letter because DFPS says it does not have it.
Shelly Troberman, another attorney specializing in defending parents in CPS cases, echoed Scalise’s concerns regarding accessibility of medical reports. “We cannot track down these medical records that we are absolutely entitled to but can’t get because it’s blocked by both the hospital and DFPS.”
Travis and Marisela Rivera told the committee that their children were taken in what they described as a wrongful emergency removal and highlighted the lack of information CPS provided.
Travis Rivera said, “Pages addressing our rights, including education, religion, access to medical records, and health, were literally crossed out with an X.”
“Upon request for medical records, the version that DFPS provided this, an abbreviated version, versus what our lawyer actually obtained from the hospital itself,” he added.
Marisela Rivera said she’s heard from other families with similar experiences. “Our experience is not unique, so either there’s a tremendous disconnect between what the department says its policies require and what is actually happening on the field, or there’s a failure of accountability when those policies aren’t followed.”
Some witnesses provided suggestions to improve CPS’ compliance with HB 2071.
Gabriel Garza noted that CPS does not have a system for accountability. “There’s a malcap limit, $250,000, not worth it. We can’t go after CPS. You can’t sue CPS. So these people are out there operating knowing that they have power and that there’s no accountability.”
The malpractice cap is set at $250,000. Garza suggested the committee consider providing a method of accountability for CPS, especially since release of records and whether the records are honest often depends on a single caseworker.
Troberman noted that some hospitals do not respond to subpoenas for records, requiring more money and hearings to obtain them and creating additional hurdles for parents without the finances to fight the case.
Another problem she raised is that there is not a centralized location for records. Troberman noted that “there is no discovery portal like there is in a criminal case.” Criminal cases include open discovery portals to access records, but CPS cases do not provide that for parents.
Lawmakers may consider these suggestions during next year’s legislative session as they work to ensure CPS’ compliance with Texas law.
