The latest health care news from The Texas Tribune.
The Houston neurosurgeon, author and frequent health care adviser to Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst on his support for the individual insurance mandate, why cutting provider rates to rescue the budget is misguided and how far Texas would trim Medicaid if given the permission. Full Story
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State Sen. Robert Deuell, R-Greenville, would rather raise taxes a little bit than make the cuts lawmakers are considering now, he told the Tribune this evening. Full Story
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State Rep. John Zerwas, R-Simonton, is no fan of "Obamacare." But he told his House colleages this afternoon that if they don't set up a health insurance exchange — one of the tenets of reform — by 2014, the federal government will do it for them. Full Story
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Finding ways to cut health care costs is all the rage under the Pink Dome — and curbing smoking is a proven way to do it. But budget proposals slash tobacco cessation programs by more than 80 percent. Full Story
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Protecting education and recognizing that the rapidly growing Hispanic population will gain a major political voice in Texas were themes that emerged Monday at the Tribune's “New Day Rising” forum. Full Story
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Republican analysts said at today's Texas Tribune "New Day Rising" forum that as Texas' Hispanic population continues to surge, its traditionally Democratic electorate is more and more up for grabs. Full Story
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Big D may need a new nickname. Despite a surging state population, the city of Dallas grew by a paltry 1 percent in the last decade — a rate lower than any of the 20 largest cities in Texas. Full Story
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The best of our best content from Feb. 21 to 25, 2011. Full Story
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No time to follow every twist and turn of the Texas Legislature? We've made it easier for you with our weekly recaps of the action under the dome. Full Story
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For our latest TribLive event, I talked about federal health care reform with state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Simonton, Anne Dunkelberg of the Center for Public Policy Priorities and Tom Banning of the Texas Academy of Family Physicians. Full Story
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At Wednesday's TribLive conversation about health care, state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Simonton, warned against defunding providers of women's health services as an unintended consequence of defunding abortion providers. Full Story
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At Wednesday's TribLive conversation about health care, state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Simonton, explained why he's introduced legislation to implement a crucial part of federal health care reform. Full Story
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At Wednesday's TribLive conversation about health care, state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Simonton, and Anne Dunkelberg of the Center for Public Policy Priorities talked about what they like and don't like about federal health care reform. Full Story
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For our latest TribLive event, I talked about federal health care reform and the consequences of the state's budget shortfall on health and human services programs with state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Simonton, Anne Dunkelberg of the Center for Public Policy Priorities and Tom Banning of the Texas Academy of Family Physicians. Full Story
There were nearly 81,000 reported abortions in Texas in 2007 — 11 percent of the abortions reported nationally, according to the Centers for Disease Control's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Texas had the 13th-highest rate of women having the procedure that year. Full Story
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House lawmakers had their first chance to weigh in on the controversial abortion sonogram bill today — and they didn't mince words. Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, compared the number of fetuses that have been aborted since Roe v. Wade to a "Holocaust times nine.” Full Story
While many people believe that needle exchange programs simply facilitate or condone illegal drug use, there is a powerful conservative argument for why they're good public policy. Full Story
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At this morning's TribLive conversation about health care, state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Simonton, took a more aggressive position than most of his fellow Republicans on the subject of whether to tap the Rainy Day Fund and how much should be tapped. Full Story
We liveblogged this morning from the Austin Club, where the subject of today's TribLive was health care: the costs — and solutions — for Medicaid, payment reform in Texas vs. the federal health overhaul, and what kind of hit Texas' neediest patients will take. Full Story
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A majority of the state's voters say they're ready for full-blown casino gambling, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll. Full Story
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