After weeks of discussion, Massachusetts lawmakers passed a bill in the Senate on Tuesday that would ban texting while driving and all cell phone use for drivers under 18.

The bill also includes a provision that would require vision tests for drivers over 75 years of age.

“After narrowly defeating a proposal to ban drivers from using handheld cell phones, the Senate on Tuesday approved legislation that would ban texting while driving and require elderly drivers to be screened by their doctors to ensure they’re fit to drive,” a Statehouse press release states.

According to the statement, if Gov. Deval Patrick signs the bill into law, police officers will be allowed to pull over any driver who is texting, whether or not they are committing other violations.

Although the bill passed with a large majority, with senators voting 24-10, some feared that if police were allowed to pull over cars because of texting, discrimination and racial profiling complaints and incidents would rise.

Before Patrick approves the bill for the law to be instated, the House, which passed a similar bill last month, will have towork with the Senate to settle differences between the two bills.

If the bill does pass, Massachusetts will join 19 other states that also ban texting while driving.

The U.S. government’s distracted driving website, distraction.gov, reports that in 2008, more than 800,000 drivers were using hand-held devices in their cars at any given time in the daytime, and 1.7 percent of drivers aged 16 to 24 were also observed using these devices in the car.

Sixteen percent of total auto fatalities in 2008 resulted from distracted driving, according to the site.