Tag Archives: Medicaid

Why endorse Sarah Davis?

Posted on September 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a good question. Planned Parenthood’s Texas political arm on Thursday endorsed state Rep. Sarah Davis, rebuffing abortion rights activists who had lobbied the group to deny political support for the Houston Republican. The efforts to deny Davis the endorsement … Continue reading →

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We don’t need a vote to expand Medicaid

Posted on August 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a fundamental truth that needs to be addressed in this. On Tuesday, Missouri became the 38th state to expand Medicaid, opening healthcare to over 230,000 Missourians. It joins a lengthy list of GOP-led states in expanding healthcare, including Nebraska, … Continue reading →

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A new homelessness initiative

Posted on July 10, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County Commissioners Court voted unanimously on Tuesday to authorize $18 million for a two-year program serving the homeless as advocates project a rise in homelessness with the novel coronavirus. The program is the county’s most ambitious partnership with … Continue reading →

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Abbott declares a state of emergency

Posted on March 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Seems like it’s called for. Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday declared that the new coronavirus is a statewide public health disaster and said that Texas is on the verge of being able to significantly ramp up its testing capacity. At … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | 33 Comments

Medicaid and hospitals

Posted on February 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. A proposed change in Medicaid rules could cost Texas hospitals billions of dollars, forcing many to cut services and some rural hospitals to close their doors, health care industry officials said. The … Continue reading →

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The extraordinary danger of being pregnant and uninsured in Texas

Posted on December 13, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

So utterly appalling. From 2012 through 2015, at least 382 pregnant women and new mothers died in Texas from causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, according to the most recent data available from the Department of State Health Services; since then, … Continue reading →

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Let this finally be the end of the Heidi Group’s grift

Posted on November 11, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

And you should all be thoroughly appalled at the waste, fraud, and abuse committed in the name of screwing Planned Parenthood. An anti-abortion group that came under fire for failing to provide services to thousands of Texas women must repay … Continue reading →

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Other counties also considering property tax rate hikes

Posted on September 23, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I have four things to say about this. A statewide property tax relief plan that takes effect next year is prompting hefty tax increases this fall in many of the biggest cities and counties in Texas, even in places that … Continue reading →

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The lawsuit to kill Obamacare has its hearing at the Fifth Circuit today

Posted on July 9, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Brace yourselves. Last year, after a federal judge in Texas declared the entirety of the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, throwing into question millions of Americans’ health coverage, the state’s Republican leaders promised they would come up with a plan to … Continue reading →

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Maybe rural counties don’t want hospitals

Posted on June 19, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

That’s what the evidence says. The voters of Fayette County have spoken, and they’ve said that they don’t need a hospital in this rural community of 322,000 people, one hour southeast of Austin — or at least not enough to … Continue reading →

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A starter agenda for when we have a Democratic state government

Posted on June 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been pondering the recent legislative session, which as we have discussed wasn’t great but also wasn’t nearly as bad as some other recent sessions have been. The qualification for all this is that the key defining factor for our … Continue reading →

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Another dive into the Heidi Group grift

Posted on June 10, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The Observer is on it this time, and as before if you’re not mad by the time you’ve finished reading you’re doing it wrong. The state of Texas has poured hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars into [Carol] Everett’s clinic, … Continue reading →

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Who cares about new mothers?

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Not the Lege. The new mothers contracted infections. They overdosed on drugs. Their hearts failed. They committed suicide. The women died in different ways, but all perished within a year of giving birth. Rising rates of maternal mortality spurred Texas … Continue reading →

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House approves budget, and other news

Posted on March 31, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Always a major milestone. In Dennis Bonnen’s first major test as speaker of the Texas House, the chamber he oversees resoundingly passed a $251 billion budget Wednesday after a long but largely civil debate — a departure from the dramatics … Continue reading →

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Rideshare for Medicaid?

Posted on March 25, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This could make sense. Texas would soon start relying on Uber, Lyft and other ridesharing services to shuttle Medicaid patients to and from the doctor, if a new House bill becomes law. The state is one of several eyeing rideshare … Continue reading →

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The Heidi Group grift

Posted on March 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

You’re not mad enough right now. Read this, that’s fix it. On a Monday evening in May 2016, Carol Everett sent an email to fellow anti-abortion activists detailing “an extraordinary pro-life opportunity.” Her nonprofit, the Heidi Group, she said, had … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Texas is not going to expand Medicaid

Posted on February 26, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t get me wrong, Texas should have expanded Medicaid at its first opportunity. It would do so much to improve health care in the state, including and especially mental health care, which would have significant spillover effects on criminal justice. … Continue reading →

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The state of the state 2019

Posted on February 6, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Sometimes it’s what you don’t say that gets noticed. Gov. Greg Abbott, in his biennial State of the State address Tuesday, stayed on message about schools and taxes, continuing state leaders’ so far unified focus on bread-and-butter policy reforms in … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit does it again

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Another terrible ruling by a terrible judge on a terrible court. A federal appeals court has lifted a lower court order that blocked Texas from booting Planned Parenthood out of Medicaid, potentially imperiling the health care provider’s participation in the … Continue reading →

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Planning to fail

Posted on September 30, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Big surprise. Anti-abortion activist Carol Everett had no experience running a family planning program when the state of Texas awarded her millions in taxpayer funds to help rebuild a network of low-income women’s health providers. The state knew that. So … Continue reading →

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Where best to attack Culberson?

Posted on July 8, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Flooding is an obvious issue, but it’s hardly the only one. After Hurricane Harvey flooded much of Houston – including the hotly contested Seventh Congressional District – Republican incumbent John Culberson used his position on the House Appropriations Committee to … Continue reading →

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Health care needs to be a twofer

Posted on June 19, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Lt. Governor candidate Mike Collier is on the right track here, but he needs to keep going. Lieutenant governor hopeful Mike Collier announced his health care reform plan Tuesday, which aims to reduce costs and increase access to health care … Continue reading →

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Senate considers mostly symbolic ideas on school safety

Posted on June 13, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Once again, see if you can tell what’s missing from this discussion. Nearly three weeks after a shooter killed 10 people at a high school southeast of Houston, lawmakers gathered at the Texas Capitol on Monday to discuss new school … Continue reading →

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It’s hard being pregnant in Harris County

Posted on April 29, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We need to figure this out. Life-threatening, pregnancy-related complications — the iceberg beneath the surface of the U.S. maternal health crisis — are on the rise in Harris County, according to a new report. The report not only confirmed the … Continue reading →

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Texas’ maternal mortality rate not as bad as previously reported

Posted on April 12, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Good news, if a bit puzzling. Several of the state’s top health experts released a report in the medical journal Obstetrics & Gynecology on Monday showing that by using the new method, the number of women who died dropped from … Continue reading →

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From the “Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash” files

Posted on March 22, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Same song, second verse. If budget writers don’t come up with money to address a state employee pension shortfall and mounting needs for public schools, health care and transportation, credit agencies are likely to downgrade Texas’ AAA rating in the … Continue reading →

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From the “Nothin’ but good times ahead” department

Posted on January 31, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Given the good economic conditions in Texas right now, you’d think the budget outlook would be better than it is. The Texas economy is growing healthily, but that doesn’t mean state budget writers will have more money at their disposal … Continue reading →

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State of the County 2017: Ed Emmett versus state leadership

Posted on December 1, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

That sound you heard was a fight breaking out. Harris County Judge Ed Emmett on Tuesday used his annual State of the County speech to blast state leaders who he said attack local governments and seek to cut needed taxes … Continue reading →

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2017 results: National

Posted on November 8, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a pretty good indicator of what kind of day it was yesterday for Democrats: Big win in the Virginia Governor’s race (and the other VA statewide races), despite a couple metric tons of pearls being clutched going into Tuesday. … Continue reading →

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The “death by a thousand cuts” strategy

Posted on July 26, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

How To Kill A Health Insurance Market, Non-Legislative Division: The move by the White House to quietly end the contracts of two companies key to assisting people enrolling for insurance under the Affordable Care Act caught Houston health advocates off … Continue reading →

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Trumpcare would be a hospital killer

Posted on July 8, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This is hardly a new problem, but it’s yet another aspect of Trumpcare that gets too little attention. Texas hospitals stand to lose billions under the Republican-backed health plan, as federal Medicaid dollars shrink, leading to a rise in uncompensated … Continue reading →

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State seeks Medicaid money it gave up over Planned Parenthood ban

Posted on May 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. Four years after Texas gave up millions of dollars in federal Medicaid funds so it could ban Planned Parenthood from participating in a family planning program for low-income women, the state is asking the Trump administration for the money … Continue reading →

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House passes its budget

Posted on April 8, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Mostly shenanigan-free, with a nice little side order of shade for a few people who deserve it. After 15 and a half hours of debate on hundreds of amendments to the Texas House budget, lawmakers in the lower chamber passed … Continue reading →

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Of course Obamacare repeal would have a big negative effect on Texas

Posted on March 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I mean, duh. As many as a half-million Texans could become uninsured under the Republican plan to replace the Affordable Care Act, wiping out at least half the gains the state has made in reducing the number of uninsured residents … Continue reading →

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