Yesterday, the Los Angeles Times began a month-long series exploring the vast differences in the healthcare Americans receive, depending on where they live. I believe the stories will be helpful to all of us interested in health care reform, and in delivering the right care at the right time. Following...
Today, the White House announced 8 million Americans signed up for private healthcare coverage during the first Marketplace open enrollment under the provisions of the Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act (ACA or Obamacare). The Washington Post's Sarah Kliff posted a helpful chart showing the enrollment surge: Factoring in people who...
I am honored to be part of the Code Red Task Force, a non-partisan volunteer group from across the State of Texas, which includes members who are interested in healthcare delivery, public health, mental health, health workforce and health policy as well as representatives from business and the community. We...
A frequent push-back against expanding health coverage to all is "the poor and the uninsured have a safety net," and often accompanies the poor advice: "they can go to the ER." Passing over, for a moment, the terrible consequences of using hospital Emergency Rooms as primary care providers, let's...
We're looking at an interesting new tool called the "Health & Wealth County Checkup" from the Texas organization Center for Public Policy Priorities. It allows users to compare economic and health benefits of expanding health coverage in Texas, using up to four counties at a time. Below, we ran...
The “woodwork” or “welcome mat” effect has been talked about extensively in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) debate. It refers to the millions of previously unenrolled Medicaid-eligible individuals who are expected to sign up for Medicaid due to the publicity surrounding the implementation of the ACA. The assumption is that...
I am encouraged to see continuing coverage of health care issues in the press. Kudos to the Houston Chronicle for their editorial "Stubborn Refusal," explicitly detailing how Texas' stubborn refusal to expand Medicaid hurts Texans -- even Texans with insurance. See excerpt below and click this link (Stubborn refusal Medicaid Chron) to read...
I am a native Texan; and have always been proud to call Texas home. We pride ourselves on being pragmatic, problem-solving leaders of the United States. However, recently, there are some aspects of being a Texan that don’t make me proud. To be precise: Texas' health care policies don't...