Past Contributions

• State Must Alert Parents in Person When Seeking Child Custody

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News July 6, 2012

  Texas' high court has ruled that state officials must personally notify parents when suing to deprive them of custody of their children. Full Story 

• HHSC Targets Premature Births in Quest to Cut Costs

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News July 3, 2012

  A new state health program launched this week aims to reduce the number of women on Medicaid whose newborns require costly neonatal intensive care. Full Story 

• After Health Reform Ruling, Texas Has Big Decisions to Make

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News June 28, 2012

  In the wake of Thursday's U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding federal health reform, Texas must decide whether to expand Medicaid and whether to roll out a consumer marketplace for comparing and purchasing insurance coverage. Full Story 

• Texans React to Health Care Ruling

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News June 28, 2012

  The Supreme Court's decision on Thursday to uphold the Affordable Care Act is sending tidal waves through Texas — particularly the state's GOP leadership. Here's a look at what Texas politicos and pundits are saying. Full Story 

• With Health Reform Constitutional, What Happens in Texas?

  By Emily Ramshaw, The Texas Tribune, and Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News June 28, 2012

  What Thursday's Supreme Court decision means for Texas, where leaders have opposed “Obamacare” despite the state's sky-high rate of uninsured residents, is complicated, both by politics and by the state's history of rejecting federal dollars. Full Story 

• Letter Urges HHSC to Block Abortion-Related Proposal

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News June 28, 2012

  Democratic legislators have asked the health commissioner to halt a proposed rule, stemming from legislation introduced by Rep. Bill Zedler, that would require women seeking abortions to report more personal information. Full Story 

• Amid Controversy, CPRIT Reassesses Priorities

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News June 26, 2012

  Advisers to the state's $3 billion Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas on Tuesday held the first of several meetings aimed at reforming an entity reeling from the controversial resignation of its chief scientific officer. Full Story 

• After Controversy, CPRIT Meets to Chart Future

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News June 26, 2012

  Under the microscope following its chief scientific officer’s controversial resignation, the state’s $3 billion cancer institute will host a meeting Tuesday in Austin to assess its business and science practices. Full Story 

• Decision Frees Cable Companies to Pursue State-Issued Franchises

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News June 21, 2012

  Cable companies can now break existing contracts with cities, negotiating instead for state-issued franchises, after the U.S. Supreme Court decided not to hear an appeal of a ruling that declared a 2005 Texas law unconstitutional. Full Story 

• At Public Ed Hearing, Complaints Center on "15 Percent Rule"

  By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News June 19, 2012

  At a House Public Education Committee hearing Tuesday, superintendents and students told lawmakers that the new "15 percent rule" regarding STAAR exams should be done away with, and some lawmakers were receptive. Full Story