Guest post by Elena Marks, health policy scholar at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Health
Houston Chronicle, May 13, 2013
As Texas lawmakers debate whether to accept billions of federal dollars to insure 1.5 million low-income adults through Medicaid, the conversation inevitably includes concerns about the program's increasing cost.
"Our Medicaid...
After the 83rd Texas Legislature concluded its session in May, it went back into a Special Session to address items deemed crucial—such as redistricting maps. Unfortunately, neither Texas-style health care reform nor the Medicaid Expansion was deemed crucial, and they are not on the agenda for this special session.
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Our colleague Elena Marks has written an insightful new column, "Penny Wise, Pound Foolish," about dysfunctional health care policies and practices that waste money and endanger patients. This is vital data for those of us pursuing the "right care at the right time," one of the key tenets for...
We have news, both good and bad.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, sometimes referred to as “Obamacare,” is neither perfect nor horrible. It is flawed, yet it attempts something health insurance professionals and policy leaders desire: more people covered with lower costs and greater efficiencies.
The good news is...
A story in today's Houston Chronicle highlights the urgent need for Houston and Harris County leaders to work together to reach our uninsured neighbors and help them sign up for health insurance.
Titled "Houston ground zero in search for uninsured," the news article covers ground those of us in health...
Newly crunched census data confirms the need for true health care reform in Texas, including a smart implementation of the Medicaid expansion. Chris Tomlinson of the Associated Press just posted some of the details:
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Two South Texas counties have among the highest rates of people without...
I had the opportunity to attend the 2013 Texas Tribune festival where Senator Ted Cruz was interviewed by Evan Smith, the editor in chief and CEO of the Tribune. After acknowledging that Senator Cruz believes the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is so flawed that it was necessary to shut...
Houston Chronicle: Was it the Texas Legislature that broke Medicaid?
By Patricia Kilday Hart
April 28, 2013
At a recent House committee hearing, a health care analyst for the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation argued against a plan to extend Medicaid benefits to low-income adults, even though the federal government has promised...