The latest health care news from The Texas Tribune.
With a packed gallery, and amid fierce debate, the Texas House took up Senate Bill 5 on Sunday — and early Monday. The bill would ban abortion after 20 weeks of gestation and impose stricter requirements on those who perform the procedure. Full Story
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After abruptly ending hours of public testimony that went into the wee hours of Friday morning, the House State Affairs Committee reconvened on Friday and quietly approved House Bill 60 and its companion, Senate Bill 5 — omnibus abortion restriction legislation. Full Story
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UPDATED: The House State Affairs Committee did not vote on an omnibus abortion bill after more than nine hours of testimony. Opponents of the measure say the abrupt end to the hearing may open the door to killing it. Full Story
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A recent state audit revealed lapses in the Texas Medical Board's oversight of pain management clinics. The agency says new funding from legislators will allow increased monitoring to curb the proliferation of "pill mills." Full Story
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State Rep. Jodie Laubenberg, R-Parker, said she hopes to reintroduce a ban on abortions after 20 weeks of gestation if her legislation passes this weekend. Full Story
Hey, Texplainer: Some people are comparing an omnibus abortion bill in the Texas Legislature to an Arizona law that was ruled unconstitutional. Are the measures the same? Full Story
A tweet by Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst that uses an advertisement by a reproductive rights group to praise the Senate’s approval of abortion restrictions late Tuesday evening was the subject of plenty of attention Wednesday. Full Story
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After hours of emotional debate Tuesday evening, the Senate approved omnibus legislation to increase abortion restrictions in Texas. Full Story
Pharmacists squeezed between the costs of drugs and the sometimes lower-than-cost reimbursements from Medicaid are looking forward to changes in managed care that will let them see behind the reimbursements and to challenge them. Full Story
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UPDATED: After hearing impassioned testimony, a Senate committee has given tentative approval to an omnibus abortion regulation bill. The legislation now goes to the full Senate. Full Story
The federal government has approved 1,100 experimental projects that could transform health care delivery to the state’s poor and uninsured. But the plan has a big catch: Local health care entities have to pony up to get the federal dollars. Full Story
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Texas plans to launch 1,100 experimental projects using a transformational Medicaid waiver. The goal: to change the way health care is delivered to the state’s poor and uninsured. This interactive shows how $3.2 billion for those projects will be spent. Full Story
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A panel of state senators will convene on Thursday to respond to Gov. Rick Perry’s call to add legislation related to abortion procedures, providers and facilities to the special session. Full Story
After a relatively calm regular session, Gov. Rick Perry is flexing his partisan muscles as the special session presses on. Redistricting, abortion-related issues and a threat to cut off state funding for the Public Integrity Unit are ratcheting up tensions. Full Story
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The special session's agenda now includes the hot-button issue of abortion — which is sure to spark partisan warfare. Gov. Rick Perry also ordered the Legislature to take up a measure dealing with sentences for 17-year-olds convicted of capital felonies. Full Story
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With legislation to ban smoking in public workplaces failing for the fourth legislative session in a row, proponents and critics say they are ready for another face-off in 2015. Full Story
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Despite a jump in the number of children participating in summer meal programs, Texas still lags when it comes to feeding children at risk of food insecurity when they're not in school, according to a report released Monday. Full Story
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The bipartisan "farm-to-table" caucus landed a couple of key victories in its first legislative session, laying the groundwork for its effort to help local agricultural businesses crop up across Texas. Full Story
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Lawmakers raced to get several bills passed before the 83rd Legislature's regular session ended. And with Monday's announcement of a special session, their work isn't done. Here's a look at the deals reached and the measures that fell short in the regular session. Full Story
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The House on Thursday knocked down a nonbinding motion to instruct conferees to keep an “anti-Medicaid expansion” amendment when they meet with Senate members to work out the final language of Senate Bill 7. Full Story
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