Opinion: Why the Health Care Rush?
from The Wall Street Journal, June 3, 2009
If sharks stop swimming, they sink and drown. President Obama seems to view his health-care program the same way. "If we don't get it done this year," he said in a recent pep talk to supporters, "we're not going to get it done." Well, why? If laying "a new foundation" for 18 percent of the economy really is as important as the President claims it is, then surely it could withstand more than fleeting inspection. More

Medicaid Patients Have Trouble Finding Doctors in Dallas Area
from The Dallas Morning News, June 3, 2009
As the state seeks ways to trim Medicaid, an increasing number of doctors frustrated with reimbursements are opting not to see new Medicaid patients. As a result, Medicaid patients often grow sicker while hunting for a doctor. More

Little Helmets
from The Odessa American, May 6, 2009
Kindergartener Ismael Ramirez, 5, center, puffs out his cheeks to prove he is being quiet in his class line as he and his fellow students wait to be dismissed Wednesday at Dowling Elementary. The kindergarteners at the school received free bicycle helmets Wednesday through the Hard Hats for Little Heads program. More

McAllen Health Care Among Most Expensive in Nation, Magazine Says
from The McAllen Monitor, May 27, 2009
A story in this month's New Yorker magazine reveals that McAllen is one of the most expensive health-care markets in the country, with Medicare spending an average of $15,000 per enrollee here - nearly twice the national average. The local medical community's reaction to the story was "irate," said Dr. Linda Villarreal, an Edinburg internist and former president of the Hidalgo-Starr County Medical Society. More

Cost Control: Docs, Hospitals, Insurers, Labor and Industry
from The Wall Street Journal Health Blog, June 1, 2009
A new letter from a variety of health care industry associations is the latest sign that, in public at least, everybody's still on board with this whole health-reform thing. The letter starts out with an overview of the familiar stuff they all agree on - better management of chronic diseases, streamlining insurance claims, that sort of thing - then gets into specific proposals from each group. More

Chaos on Legislature’s Last Day; Special Session Possible
from The Austin American-Statesman, June 2, 2009
The Texas Legislature, in an 11th-hour meltdown over $2 billion in road-building bonds and future construction projects, adjourned Monday, the last day of the session, without approving a safety-net measure to keep five agencies from shutting down - including the state's primary transportation and insurance agencies. More

Letter: Docs Cite Patient Care
from The San Antonio Express-News, June 1, 2009
Physicians are responsible for coordinating the various components of health care as they are delivered by the health-care team. We must focus on this coordination as Texas searches for safe ways to meet our shortage of health-care professionals. More

'Balance Billing' Measure Moves Closer to Approval by Legislature
from The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, May 30, 2009
A bill that would help patients protest charges by doctors under so-called balance billing inched closer to Gov. Rick Perry’s desk for approval. The Texas Senate approved a bill by Rep. Kelly Hancock (R-North Richland Hills). The bill would set up a mediation system for patients hit unexpectedly by out-of-network charges for doctors such as radiologists, pathologists, anesthesiologists and emergency room physicians. More

Family Physicians Hail 'Most Important Legislation to Pass in Decades'
from The Rio Grande Guardian, May 31, 2009
Lawmakers successfully triumphed over the powerful tobacco lobby to pass a bill that will use monies from taxes levied on smokeless tobacco to assist physicians in repaying their school loans. House Bill 2154, by state Rep. Al Edwards (D-Houston) would revamp the Texas Physician Education Loan Repayment Program. Currently, the state forgives up to $45,000 of a medical graduate's loans if he or she practices in a shortage area. Most physicians graduate with more than $160,000 in school loans, however. More

Perry Names Eleven Students to Boards
from The Austin American-Statesman, May 29, 2009
Gov. Rick Perry has announced the appointment of 11 students to serve on higher education boards. Such students do not vote or count toward a quorum but are permitted to participate in all discussions, including closed-door meetings. More

House Has Final Say on Rural Doctor Fund
from The Amarillo Globe-News, May 29, 2009
Except for a bill filed by Sen. Robert Duncan of Lubbock, most bills seeking to help rural West Texas counties get more doctors are near the finish line in this legislative session, which ends midnight Monday. One is House Bill 2154, which the Senate recently approved. It's back in the House for final passage. More

Texas Medical Association Comes to the Aid of Hurricane Swamped UTMB Students
from The Austin American-Statesman, May 29, 2009
The Texas Medical Association, an Austin-based association representing nearly 44,000 physicians and medical students, raised $68,950 to assist University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston students dealing with recovery from Hurricane Ike. More

Ogden 'Sweep' of Doctor Bill Money Shifts Yet More of School Finance Tax-Swap Burden to Tobacco
from The Dallas Morning News Trail Blazers Politics Blog, May 26, 2009
We warned you that Sen. Steve Ogden was on the prowl for budget-balancing money - and willing to stiff a cadre of tobacco lobbyists to get his way. In his Finance Committee and on the Senate floor, Ogden linked higher taxes on smokeless tobacco with a late-session priority of Gov. Rick Perry and the small business lobby - exempting more small firms from the state's revamped business tax. More

Local Physician Tapped by Governor
from The West University Examiner, May 27, 2009
TMA member Dr. Lewis E. Foxhall of Southside Place was one of three members appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to the State Health Services Council for terms to expire Feb. 1, 2015. The council makes recommendations regarding the management, operation, policies and rules for public health, mental health and substance abuse. More