Rep. Brian Harrison, District 10’s Republican representative in the Texas House of Representatives, spoke with us about some of his priorities for this year’s legislative session—which ends on May 29th—at our recent 2023 Texas State of Reform Health Policy Conference. Among his topics of focus is lowering prescription drug costs, having sponsored a bill this … Read more
In continuation of a long-term effort, Democratic Sen. Nathan Johnson is again advocating for the expansion of Texas Medicaid during this year’s legislative session. We caught up with the senator at our North Texas conference last fall. In light of continually increasing public support for expansion, Johnson introduced three different bills to do so this … Read more
Texas Democratic Rep. Julie Johnson is continuing to advocate for progressive healthcare reforms including Medicaid expansion, despite continued opposition to the effort from the Republican majority in the state legislature. She again filed a bill in the legislature this year to establish the “Live Well Texas” program to expand Medicaid, which hasn’t yet received a … Read more
This edition features information about the work state leaders are doing to prepare for Medicaid redeterminations, a conversation with Carelon Behavioral Health’s Kevin Denmark about the company’s recent rebranding, and some some health-related bills of interest. Thanks for reading! Eli Kirshbaum State of Reform 1. State leaders discuss Medicaid redeterminations With the Medicaid eligibility … Read more
Leaders from both the House and Senate released their respective chambers’ preliminary budgets for the 2024-2025 biennium on Wednesday. Both budgets propose nearly $289 billion from total funds and $130.1 billion in general revenue, some $50 billion short of the $188.2 billion that the state has available to appropriate over the next cycle, including a … Read more
The Texas Legislature will consider several bills that address maternal health equity in the next session. Rep. Shawn Thierry (D – Houston), an outspoken advocate for Black maternal health, authored 3 of those bills, House Bills 465, 460, and 472. HB 472 would establish the Office of Health Equity (OHE) within the Health … Read more
On November 2nd, prior to his reelection as Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton announced that the state was entering into a $5 billion multi-state settlement with CVS Pharmacy for its inadequate monitoring of opioid prescriptions. Texas is expected to see an additional $276 million from the deal to the more than $4 billion … Read more
State of Reform announced on Wednesday that Texas Medicaid Director Stephanie Stephens and Parkland Health and Hospital System President and CEO Fred Cerise, MD, will be keynote speakers at the upcoming 2022 North Texas State of Reform Health Policy Conference in Dallas. This will be an all-day event at the Irving Convention Center … Read more
The Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium (TCMHCC) sends its deepest sympathies to those affected by the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas this week. No child, no parent, no community should have to experience what happened on May 24th at Robb Elementary. The impact of the tragedy on the mental health of the survivors, … Read more
This newsletter features a video of the Lunch Keynote from last month’s 2022 Texas State of Reform Health Policy Conference as well as updates on Medicaid financing and important health policy litigation. Thanks, as always, for reading! Eli Kirshbaum State of Reform 1. Lunch Keynote: Health policy in the Texas Legislature Two high-profile leaders in health … Read more