The governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, took a new step in his immigration policy by signing an executive order that orders several state agencies to investigate and combat the so-called “birth tourism” schemes, a practice through which women travel to the United States with the purpose of giving birth and for their children to obtain citizenship by birth.

The order, announced this week, directs the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), the Department of State Health Services, the Texas Medical Board, the Board of Nursing, and other regulatory agencies to investigate complaints against individuals or entities that promote or facilitate these activities.

“Birth tourism” in the spotlight: what measures does the order contemplate

According to the state government, agencies will have to take action against any professional or establishment that participates in these schemes. Possible sanctions include:

Abbott stated that “US citizenship is not for sale” and maintained that Texas will not allow immigration laws to be exploited through these types of practices.

The measure comes after a previous investigation

The new executive order did not emerge in isolation, but rather deepens an offensive launched by Abbott in early July. At that time, the governor ordered an investigation into a south Texas hospital that promoted maternity packages for foreign women through advertising broadcast in Mexico.

According to the state government, the medical center offered services aimed at pregnant women who were temporarily traveling to the United States to give birth. After hearing about the case, Abbott instructed the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to open an investigation and sent the file to Attorney General Ken Paxton to evaluate possible legal actions against those responsible.

Now, the new executive order expands that scope. It is no longer limited to a specific case, but instead orders all competent state agencies to identify and investigate hospitals, clinics, doctors, nurses and any other health service provider that participates in or facilitates “birth tourism” schemes.

The objective, according to the governor's office, is to prevent organizations or professionals from obtaining financial benefits by promoting these types of practices in Texas.

A debate that is still open

The decision also comes a few weeks after the Supreme Court kept in force the constitutional principle of citizenship by birth, while political disputes continue over its scope and the initiatives promoted by different states to limit so-called “birth tourism.”

Although specialized organizations maintain that this is a relatively infrequent phenomenon compared to the total number of births registered in the United States, Abbott believes that supervision should be strengthened over those who obtain economic benefits by offering this type of services.