Electronic Health Records Requirements (S.B. 1188)
Texas EHR Law (SB 1188)
Health · Data security · Artificial intelligence · Children
Requires electronic health records of Texans to be physically stored in the United States and accessible only to staff who need them, bars recording credit scores or voter registration status in health records, gives parents immediate access to minors' records, and requires practitioners to disclose diagnostic AI use. It also adds biological-sex recording rules for records.
- Where
- Texas
- Citation
- Tex. Health & Safety Code ch. 183 (183.001-183.012)
- Status
- In force
- In force since
- 2025-09-01
- Enforced by
- Texas Attorney General (civil penalties and injunctions); Health and Human Services Commission and regulatory agencies (investigation and discipline)
- People can sue
- No
- Penalties
- Up to $5,000 (negligent), $25,000 (knowing or intentional), or $250,000 (knowing use of PHI for financial gain) per violation per year; licensing discipline after three or more violations (183.010-183.011).
- Applies to
- Covered entities (as defined in Health & Safety Code 181.001) that prepare, maintain, or store electronic health records
- Health care practitioners who use AI for diagnostic purposes (183.005)
What a privacy notice must say
- Practitioners who use AI for diagnosis or treatment recommendations must review AI-created records and disclose the AI use to patients.Tex. Health & Safety Code 183.005
Rights it gives people
- EHR systems must let a minor's parent, managing conservator, or guardian obtain complete and immediate access to the minor's record unless law or court order restricts it.Tex. Health & Safety Code 183.006
Practices it requires
- Do not collect, store, or share a person's credit score or voter registration status in an EHR.Tex. Health & Safety Code 183.004
Security duties
- Physically maintain EHRs containing patient information in the United States or its territories, including records held by cloud or third-party providers.Tex. Health & Safety Code 183.002(a) · From 2026-01-01
- Limit access to Texans' EHR information to people who need it for treatment, payment, or health care operations, and apply administrative, physical, and technical safeguards.Tex. Health & Safety Code 183.002(b)-(c)
Sources
- Official text
- Tex. Health & Safety Code ch. 183 (Texas Legislature, Texas Constitution and Statutes)
- Tex. Health & Safety Code ch. 183, statute text file served by the Texas Legislative Council
- S.B. 1188 (89R) bill history (Texas Legislature Online)
- S.B. 1188 (89R) enrolled text (Texas Legislature Online)
Checked against these sources on 2026-09-24 by research agent (Claude), primary sources.
Research reference, not legal advice.