Thousands Rally for Smaller Budget Cuts
Thousands of protesters chanted "They say, 'Cut back.' We say, 'Fight back'" as they marched to the Capitol this afternoon to rally against proposed budget cuts. Full Story
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Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Updated: Will Hospitals Be Taxed to Prop Up Medicaid?
Talk has resumed in the Senate — albeit quietly — about a so-called quality assurance fee, a revenue generator that would effectively tax hospitals to prop up the state’s cash-strapped Medicaid program. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Medical Board Bill Moves Out of Public Health
The House Public Health Committee put its stamp of approval this morning on a much-watered-down version of Rep. Fred Brown's Texas Medical Board bill, a measure designed to protect doctors from unfounded complaints. Full Story
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![State Rep. Bill Zedler, R-Arlington, Dr. Steve Hotze and Rep. Fred Brown, R-Bryan.]()
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Pitts Talks, Gently, of Adding Money to Budget
Less than two days after approving a state budget that cuts $23 billion from current spending, Rep. Jim Pitts says House leaders are already talking among themselves about how much more money they'd be willing to spend. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Senate Leaders: Fix State Revenue Now or Pay Later
Texas need to address its structural deficit during the current session, or it will face even deeper financial problems in two years than it faces today, senate leaders said Tuesday afternoon. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Study: Health Reform's Effects On Texas
If federal health care reform stays on the books, it will help 5 million Texans get health insurance and increase state health care spending by roughly 10 percent in the next five years, according to the RAND Corporation. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
Doctor Legislation Raises Safety Concerns, Questions of Motive
Are Texas doctors hamstrung by unfounded complaints? Reps. Bill Zedler and Fred Brown think so. But the bills they've filed to address the issue are largely opposed by the state's biggest physician organization. Full Story
![State Rep. Bill Zedler, R-Arlington, Dr. Steve Hotze and Rep. Fred Brown, R-Bryan.]()
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Updated: Hospitals, Advocates at Odds Over Preemie Bills
Lawmakers agree that curbing elective inductions of labor and so-called “convenience” cesarean sections would prevent premature births and save the state money. But how best to do it has left child welfare advocates and hospitals at odds. Full Story
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![Natasha and Mark Rosen, of Austin, with baby Matthew, who was born 3 months premature, in Seton Medical Center Austin's neonatal intensive care unit. Texas lawmakers are looking for ways to curb prenatal births and the high costs they present for the state's Medicaid program.]()
Credit: Caleb Miller Bryant -
House Budget Shrinks Spending, Slashes Services
The Texas House started with a $164.5 billion budget and ended with the same total. But lawmakers spent the better part of a weekend making changes inside the budget for 2012-13 before giving it their approval, 98 to 49. Full Story
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![Rep. Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, speaks with Rep. John Otto, R-Dayton, on the House floor during the budget debate.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Guest Column: Of Course We Can Cut the Budget
Today, as we vote on House Bill 1, we are in the position of squeezing water out of rock, and the process is hard and dirty work. Democrats will say there is no water in the rock. They are wrong. Full Story
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Insurers Drop Child-Only Plans, Blame Health Reform
Insurers in Texas have stopped offering new child-only policies in protest over a provision of the federal health care overhaul. For children being raised by their grandparents, there are few options left. Full Story
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![Phil and Diann Green at home with their granddaughter Aria, who they've raised since infancy. The Greens, who are retiring and will soon switch from employer-sponsored insurance to Medicare, have been unable to find a child-only health insurance policy for Aria. Insurers in Texas and many other states have stopped offering the policies in protest over federal health reform rules.]()
Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller -
Plenty of Politics in Budget Amendments
Numbers aren’t all that’s buried in the budget. Lawmakers have filed hundreds of amendments that are political in nature, from repealing in-state tuition for illegal immigrants to trying to push Planned Parenthood out of the family planning business. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
HIV Medication Program in Peril
With budget deliberation looming in the Legislature, Gretch Sanders of KUT News reports that funding cuts to one health program could mean a death sentence for some. Full Story
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Credit: UK Department for International Development -
Advocates Rally to Retain State Health Funds
Hundreds of people rallied at the Capitol today to urge lawmakers to maintain state spending on Medicaid and CHIP, the health care programs for children, the disabled and the very poor. Full Story
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![Community home care advocates for children rally on the South steps of the Capitol against budget cuts]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
"Retarded" Likely to Be Struck From Texas Statutes
File this in the "this hasn't happened yet?" category: The Texas Legislature has taken one big step toward banishing the "R" word from state statutes. Full Story
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Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman -
Study Ranks Texas Counties by Health
Williamson County is home to Texas' healthiest residents, and Marion County is the least healthy in the state, according to the annual County Health Rankings. Full Story
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![East Texas residents shop in a grocery store.]()
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Zerwas: Texas Health Insurance Exchange May Be Dead
State Rep. John Zerwas, the Simonton Republican who has filed legislation to implement one of the key elements of federal health care reform, said his bill may be permanently stuck. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
Health Payment Reform Bills Get Warm Reception
Two sweeping bills to reward patient outcomes — as opposed to the current system that incentivizes overutilization — got a warm welcome in a Senate committee hearing this morning. Full Story
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![Sen. Jane Nelson and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst introduce legislation designed to improve Texas health care.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Texas Hospitals: Budget Cuts Are Too Deep
Texas hospital officials, anticipating a House budget vote later this week, warned this morning that the current proposal could mean funding cuts of up to 37 percent for some hospitals. Full Story
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![Leaders from Texas Hospital Association and other hospital groups urge members of the Texas House to protect funding for local hospitals, doctors and nurses. March 29th, 2011]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Several Texas Counties Among Most Diverse
Fort Bend County, home of Sugar Land, is almost as diverse as the Bronx in New York. Several other Texas counties rank high on the list. Full Story
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Credit: Graphic by Matt Stiles
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