Healthcare

Texas has the highest uninsured rate of children, adults, and women in the country. Reform Austin is committed to providing in-depth reporting to illuminate the critical issues and challenges Texans are facing in healthcare.
Texas is one of 14 states that refuses to expand Medicaid coverage. Almost 10 years after the passage of the Affordable Care Act, Texas still ranks last when it comes to affordability and access.
Additionally, a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act could cost 1.73 million people healthcare coverage. Texas is the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit.
Texas still ranks among the worst for maternal mortality and low overall for women’s health. One in four Texas women are uninsured. Currently, women can obtain maternity Medicaid coverage until 2 months after childbirth. Advocates have argued that the coverage length is insufficient, and to address the maternal mortality crisis, coverage should be expanded to one year. Though Medicaid expansion would have made the biggest stride in improving women’s health, the policy did not get beyond a committee hearing or House floor vote in the 86th Legislative Session.
Approximately 875,000 Texas children do not have health insurance. From 2016 to 2018, the percentage of uninsured children rose from 10.7 percent to 11.2 percent. In Texas, once a child is approved for Medicaid they are covered for six months. After the six-month period, the state requires parents to file income updates monthly to continue the coverage. If the state determines there is a problem, parents are given 10 days to respond with necessary paperwork. This has led to many children being removed from the Medicaid roles, despite still qualifying for the program.
Reform Austin covers access to healthcare, healthcare quality, mental health, public health programs, and vaccinations. We report on laws the Texas Legislature passes and the effects they have on the healthcare system, as well as the laws that fail. In addition, we report on lawmakers involved to ensure our elected leaders are working for the public good.

Blue Cross Blue Shield Customers Who Overpaid Are Due for Refunds

In an emergency, where you end up getting care can be out of your hands, and that can mean being treated out of your...

5 Million Texans Lack Health Insurance. Here’s How That Complicates the Coronavirus Response.

For Christian Gutierrez, preparing for a coronavirus outbreak is as much a financial consideration as it is a health one. At what point should the...

SXSW 2020 Health Panels Focus on Possible Solutions

At this time, South by Southwest (SXSW) will go on despite global coronavirus concerns. But there is potentially more uplifting news to be found...

Texas Obamacare Case Goes to Supreme Court, Keeping Health Care in Spotlight

The Supreme Court agreed early Monday to hear a lawsuit that seeks to strike down the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  The federal lawsuit was filed...

How Texas Is Preparing for Coronavirus

There are 10 cases of coronavirus in Texas in different stages of quarantine. All the patients are in isolation at Lackland Air Force base...

Advocates Say Expanding Medicaid Could Help the Homeless. Greg Abbott Says He's Weighing Options.

Susan Peake lives at the state-run homeless encampment off U.S. Highway 183 in Austin. Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune When Susan Peake moved...

Where is Texas When It Comes to Pregnancy and Maternity Leave?

Pregnancy or adoption can be both wonderful and stressful for parents-to-be, and the length of paid parental leave can make a big difference. The Pregnancy...

TexasAIM: How Does it Help Maternal Health?

Maternal mortality may not be something you’d think of as a crisis in 2020, but it is in Texas. Women are dying. Texas is...

New Money Allocated for Healthy Texas Women—But Will It Be Enough?

Illustration by Mariana G. Texas women have a healthcare problem.  In 2017, Houston Public Media reported that 17 percent of Texas women live in poverty. In...

Is Texas Prepared for a Virus Outbreak?

Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported ongoing investigations for the coronavirus, an infectious upper respiratory virus responsible for 106...
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