Earlier this year, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced the 2026 interim legislative charges, directing lawmakers to examine the exploitation of surrogacy and review the unethical and foreign interests operating within Texas’ surrogacy and fertility industries.
On Wednesday, the Texas Senate Committee on Health and Human Services heard testimony on foreign nationals contracting with Texas surrogates to have children.
The hearing comes as birth tourism has become a serious issue within the state, with some hospitals facing criticism for advertising birth services to foreign nationals seeking to give birth in the state.
Mission Regional Medical Center, which was accused of advertising birth tourism services, is currently under investigation by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
During the hearing, Jennifer Lahl, founder of The Center for Bioethics and Culture Network, recommended lawmakers take action to halt international surrogacy arrangements.
“My recommendations would be, close your borders, close all secure international surrogacy arrangements, whether they be commercial or altruistic,” Lahl said.
The committee also heard testimony from Vanessa Sivadge, a pediatric nurse and president of Protecting Texas Children, who urged lawmakers to protect Texas women and children.
“Today, many are becoming aware that our laws can be exploited by foreign nationals seeking to secure the rights and privileges of American citizenship through children in the United States,” Sivadge said. “While much attention has been given to birthright tourism, we cannot ignore the role that commercial surrogacy now plays in this growing industry.”
Sivadge said the industry relies on recruiting vulnerable women to carry pregnancies for others by offering financial compensation that many find difficult to refuse.
In Texas, a first-time surrogate can earn $50,000 to $65,000, with experienced surrogates earning between $70,000 to $90,000 or more.
“In light of the Supreme Court’s ruling, Texas has an opportunity and a responsibility to ensure that our laws protect vulnerable women from exploitation, safeguard the welfare of children, and prevent our state from becoming a destination for those seeking to exploit loopholes in our citizenship laws,” Sivadge said.
Todd Bensman, a senior research fellow at The Heritage Foundation, told the Daily Signal the issue ultimately belongs before Congress, but said he supports Texas taking action as Congress likely won’t.
“I would applaud Texas for blazing a path at this particular problem. It’s a unique grey area in the law,” Bensman said.
Bensman said that if Congress won’t take it up, Texas should lead the way and prosecute birth tourism fraud.
“I think that birth tourism, that’s fraud, that’s going to be criminal,” he said. “If they can find a criminal nexus to foreign nationals coming in and having babies in the state, filing state paperwork of different kinds to regularize the kid, making under-oath statements to police and hospitals and the state agencies, maybe there’s something there for the attorney general to investigate as a way forward,” he said.
Ammon Blair, a senior fellow for the Secure and Sovereign Nation initiative at Texas Public Policy Foundation, also told the Daily Signal that lawmakers have several options to combat the issue.
“I think there are several meaningful actions Texas lawmakers can take, but the first step is separating three issues that are often conflated: birthright citizenship, federal immigration admission and enforcement, and the commercial or organized infrastructure operating inside Texas that facilitates birth-tourism or foreign surrogacy schemes,” Blair said.
The 90th Texas Legislative Session is scheduled to convene on Jan. 12, 2027.
Emily Medeiros | Texas Correspondent
To see the original story, click here.