The latest Health And Human Services Commission news from The Texas Tribune.
State health officials have pulled guidelines allowing abortion facilities to use pre-recorded telephone messages to provide informed consent to patients off of their website. They said concerns raised by Rep. Frank Corte, who is seeking an AG opinion on the matter, "may have merit." Full Story
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Doctors, patients, non-profits, and industry leaders lined up to testify today before the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. Their message: Texans cannot afford any more cuts. Full Story
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The Texas Health and Human Services Commission has released its best bets for how to meet the 5 percent budget reduction requested by Gov. Rick Perry and other state leaders. Full Story
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Immunization advocates want to expand our vaccination database, but the well-educated, middle-class parents who oppose them are organized and driven — and could force lawmakers to take sides in the tussle between personal freedom and public health. Full Story
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Advocates for vaccination records say a complete registry of shots would help the state navigate major health crises. Opponents say it would jeopardize patient privacy. Lawmakers like the potential cost savings, but they still aren’t sure where they stand. Full Story
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Three challenges stand between Texas and the era of electronic medical records: convincing doctors to use them, figuing out how to safely share and protect them and finding a way to pay for them. Full Story
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Three strategies can move Texas in the right direction, health-wise: a statewide indoor smoking ban, statewide universal K-12 coordinated school health programs, and the serious consideration of all available options to reduce the number of uninsured Texans. Full Story
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Some physicians in undeserved areas of Texas worry that the doctor shortage is not being addressed in the health care reform debate. As part of his continuing exploration of the effort to rewrite health care policy, KUT's Nathan Bernier talked to an East Austin doctor who's doing his best to serve as many patients as possible. Full Story
Members of Congress are working to reconcile two massive health care bills that Texas doctors say will affect their practices and their patients. As part of his continuing exploration of how the effort to rewrite health care policy is playing here, KUT's Nathan Bernier talked to an eye doctor in North Austin. Full Story
As Congress wrestles with the fine print of massive health care legislation, doctors in Texas say both their practices and their patients will be affected. Nathan Bernier reports for KUT News from Athens, about three hours northeast of Austin, where a doctor reveals the unique challenges of providing care in a small town. Full Story
In rural counties, recruiting doctors is the single biggest health care challenge. Twenty-seven counties have no primary care physicians. Full Story
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It’s no time to be an advocate for rural health care. Rural lawmakers say they're consistently outnumbered and under-represented — and that redistricting will only make matters worse. Full Story
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The state is working to get poor Texans food stamps quicker, but it's not fast enough for many families, and too many children are getting their only hot meal at school, according to Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid. Full Story
Emergency medicine doctors say trauma victims must receive care within the “golden hour” to survive. But many rural Texas counties aren’t anywhere near hospitals that can handle complex injuries or illness. Full Story
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Roll your own political videos ... interactive travel maps of your federal and state legislators ... scary movies, to keep the kids out of the border's scary drug wars ... puttting dropouts back in class ... rates squeezing families out of home health care ... how many lobby and trade associations do teachers in Texas need? ... enjoying the silence before an expected two-month siege of political advertising ... the dean of Texas political writers gets shut out of the gubernatorial debates ... and we have an interactive database of the state's best and worst public schools. The best of our best for a short news week, from December 19 to 26, 2009. Full Story
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Families of disabled Texans fear an increase in home nursing rates could force them to cut services for their loved ones. Full Story
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The home health care cuts that Congress will likely make to fund federal health care reform will take an extra large swipe at Texas. Full Story
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Benjamin Ligums was born with a rare degenerative brain disease that left him immobile, non-verbal and legally blind. His family has found a second home at Baylor's Transition Medicine Clinic, which specializes in treating profoundly disabled young adults. Full Story
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When kids with disabilities transfer from children’s Medicaid to the adult program, they lose services, health care and medical expertise. A few committed doctors and social workers are stepping in to ease the transition. Full Story
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The Texas Departments of Family and Protective Services and State Health Services are launching a "Room to Breathe" campaign to educate parents about the dangers of co-sleeping, a controversial subject that they appear to be approaching with caution. Full Story