This morning, the bipartisan Code Red Taskforce released its 2015 report for Texas healthcare reform. The report is available for download here.
In brief, the recommendations for Texas are:
- Obtain a greater share of federal tax funding, much of which is paid by Texans and Texas businesses, to expand health insurance coverage so more Texans have access to primary care and health, wellness and prevention programs.
- Create an appropriate state health plan, such as Texas Prescription TxRx (See APPENDIX A)
- Extend/renew the current Medicaid 1115 Waiver.
- Develop robust local and regional health care delivery systems with increasing emphasis on wellness and prevention programs.
- Continue to expand behavioral health care and integrate with primary care.
- Expand the health care workforce in response to community need.
- Support continued federal funding of FQHCs.
The Code Red Task Force on Access to Healthcare in Texas (Task Force) is a nonpartisan group that includes representatives from large and small employers in Texas, health care providers, hospitals, medical schools, non-governmental organizations, insurers, health policy experts, as well as community and business leaders. The Task Force issued its first report, Code Red: The Critical Condition of Health in Texas in April 2006, and published an update in 2008. In 2010-2011, the Task Force sponsored four well-attended workshops on improving health care delivery systems.
The Task Force’s Code Red Report 2012 provided information to support the successful implementation of the Texas Healthcare Transformational and Quality Improvement Program, the Medicaid 1115 Waiver.
