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95 Document(s) [ Subject: Medicaid ]

Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Assisted living facilities | At-risk youth | Cancer | Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas | Child welfare | Children without placement | Children's mental health | Coronavirus | Emergency management | Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 | Family and Protective Services, Texas Department of | Foster care | Health and Human Services Commission, Texas | Health care | Health insurance | Hurricane Beryl | Intermediate Care Facilities for Persons with Mental Disabilities | Juvenile detention facilities | Long-term care | Medicaid | Medicaid fraud | Medical licensing | Medical screening | Mental health services | Nursing education | Nursing homes | Nursing shortages | Occupational licenses | Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act | Physician shortages | Power outages | Thriving Texas Families | Vaccine mandates | Workforce Commission, Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.88 H349
Session: 88th R.S. (2023)
Online version: View report [94 pages  File size: 3,997 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Children’s Mental Health: Review care and services currently available to the growing population of Texas children with high acuity mental and behavioral health needs. Make recommendations to improve access to care and services for these children that will support family preservation and prevent them from entering the child welfare system.
2. Access to Health Care: Evaluate current access to primary and mental health care. Examine whether regulatory and licensing flexibilities could improve access to care, particularly in medically underserved areas of Texas. Make recommendations, if any, to improve access to care while maintaining patient safety.
3. Health Insurance: Examine the Texas health insurance market and alternatives to employer-based insurance. Identify barriers Texans face when navigating a complex health insurance market. Make recommendations that help individuals obtain health care coverage.
4. Cancer Prevention: Identify and recommend ways to address the growing impact of cancer on Texans by evaluating state investments in cancer prevention and screenings including, but not limited to, "CT," "MRI," and "PET" scans. Study and make recommendations on funding adequacy for prevention efforts at the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT).
5. Monitoring: Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services passed by the 88th Legislature, as well as relevant agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction. Specifically, make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, or complete implementation of the following:
  • SB 7, 88th 3rd C.S., relating to prohibiting a private employer from adopting or enforcing certain COVID-19 vaccine mandates; authorizing an administrative penalty;
  • SB 24, 88th R.S., relating to the powers and duties of the Health and Human Services Commission and the transfer to the commission of certain powers and duties from the Department of Family and Protective Services;
  • SB 25, 88th R.S., relating to support for nursing-related postsecondary education, including scholarships to nursing students, loan repayment assistance to nurses and nursing faculty, and grants to nursing education programs;
  • SB 26, 88th R.S., relating to local mental health authority and local behavioral health authority audits and mental and behavioral health reporting, services, and programs;
  • SB 1849, 88th R.S., relating to an interagency reportable conduct search engine, standards for a person's removal from the employee misconduct registry and eligibility for certification as certain Texas Juvenile Justice Department officers and employees, and the use of certain information by certain state agencies to conduct background checks;
  • Initiatives to reduce Medicaid fraud, waste, and abuse, as well as other cost containment strategies; and
  • Medicaid managed care oversight and accountability.
6. Protecting Vulnerable Texans in Emergencies: Examine commercial residential settings for the elderly and individuals with intellectual disabilities, including assisted living facilities, boarding homes, group homes, and independent living communities. Identify emergency preparedness and response protocols required during severe weather for these populations. Make recommendations, if necessary, for the establishment and enforcement of emergency protocols to ensure vulnerable populations are protected.
Committee: Senate Finance
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Bail | Border security | Coronavirus | Economy | Employees Retirement System of Texas | Federal funds | Harris County | Homestead exemptions | Hospitals | Inflation | Investment of public funds | Long-term care | Medicaid | Mental health services | Nursing homes | Operation Lone Star (Border security) | Property tax exemptions | Property taxes | Public retirement systems | Recidivism | Retirees | Russia | School finance | State employee salaries | State employee turnover | Tax and expenditure limits | Tax revenue | Teacher Retirement System of Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.87 F49
Session: 87th R.S. (2021)
Online version: View report [108 pages  File size: 4,001 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Federal Funds: Report on the state use of federal COVID-19 relief funds provided under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, the American Rescue Plan Act, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Acts, and similar federal legislation. Examine local use of federal relief funding, including funding provided to school districts through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund. Evaluate the overall fiscal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on state agencies, including costs incurred due to federal mandates. Identify barriers to the effective utilization of funds and make recommendations on the expenditure of unappropriated funds. In addition, evaluate and report on the spending by state agencies that have been utilizing "one-time" federal funding (temporary enhancements, e.g. FMAP and ESSER) sources, where federal funding will likely be significantly reduced in future biennia.
2. Property Tax Relief: Examine and recommend ways to reduce Texans' property tax burden. Review and report on proposals to use or dedicate state revenues in excess of the state spending limit to eliminate the school district maintenance and operations property tax.
3. Inflation: Review and report on the effect inflation is having on the business community and state government, including state salaries, retiree benefits, the state economy, and cost of state services.
4. Inflation: Review and report on the impact of inflation on units of local governments' revenue collections and property taxpayers' tax bills, including the homestead exemption.
5. Tax Exemptions: Examine Texans' current tax exemptions and report on whether adjustments are merited because of inflation or any other factors.
6. Russia Divestiture: Examine and report on options for state asset owners to divest their positions in companies that invest in the Russian Federation.
7. State Pension Reforms: Monitor the implementation of recent statewide pension reforms to the Employees Retirement System of Texas and the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.
8. Bail Bond Reform: Monitor the implementation of recent bail bond reform legislation along with its economic impact on the judicial and correctional system. Assess any barriers to implementation, the law’s effect on pretrial release and jail populations, and ways to further promote public safety and efficiency.
9. Operation Lone Star: Monitor appropriations and spending supporting Operation Lone Star. Evaluate and report on the effectiveness of spending to secure the southern border. Identify and report on resources needed to ensure support for the State National Guard, as well as overall resources necessary for border security for future legislative consideration.
10. Long-term Care Funding: Examine state investments in the long-term nursing home care system. Study nursing facility funding issues and the impact of the pandemic on capacity and delivery of care. Explore nursing facility quality metrics and recommend strategies to improve the sustainability of the long-term care workforce.
11. Medicaid: Monitor the financial impact of federal decision-making affecting supplemental Medicaid funding for Texas hospitals and health care systems, including negotiations between the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Texas Medicaid agency regarding the state's 1115 Medicaid waiver and other federal proposals reducing supplemental funding streams for Texas.
12. Mental Health Delivery: Examine the state mental health service delivery system. Study the state's Comprehensive Plan for State-Funded Inpatient Mental Health Services and the Statewide Behavioral Health Strategic Plan and evaluate the existing state investments in mental health services and state hospital capacity. Review current forensic and civil mental health service waitlists, and recommend ways to improve coordination and outcomes to reduce waitlists. Explore and report on options for additional mental health service capacity, including building state hospitals in the Panhandle and Rio Grande Valley areas.
Committee: House Health Care Reform, Select
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Children's Health Insurance Program | Disease prevention | Health care | Health care costs | Health care disparities | Health insurance | Medicaid | Medical screening | Prescription drug costs |
Library Call Number:
Session: 87th R.S. (2021)
Online version: View report [102 pages  File size: 2,402 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study the implications of excessive health care costs on the efficacy of Texas Medicaid and the private health insurance market and the resulting impact on individual Texans, businesses, and state government. Specifically, the committee shall:
  • Examine the interaction of specific factors of health care affordability such as transparency, competition, and patient incentives. Make recommendations to expand access to health care price information to allow consumers to make informed decisions regarding their care;
  • Examine the impact of government benefit, administrative, and contractual mandates imposed upon private insurance companies and their impact on employer and consumer premiums and out-of-pocket costs, including the effects of specific benefit and any-willing-provider requirements. Make recommendations for state and agency level mandates and regulations that could be relaxed or repealed to increase the availability and affordability of private health coverage options in this state; and
  • Review access to and affordability of prescription drugs.
2. Monitor the implementation of, and compliance with, current price transparency requirements and study ways that the state can support patients and increase competition. Make legislative and administrative recommendations, as appropriate.
3. Evaluate innovative, fiscally positive options to ensure that Texans have access to affordable, quality, and comprehensive health care, with an emphasis on reaching low income and at-risk populations. The evaluation should include a study of strategies other states and organizations have implemented or proposed to address health care access and affordability. Make recommendations to increase primary health care access points in Texas.
4. Study ways to improve outreach to families with children who are eligible for, but not enrolled in, Medicaid or CHIP, including children in rural areas.
5. Examine the potential impact of delayed care on the state's health care delivery system, health care costs, and patient health outcomes, as well as best practices for getting patients with foregone or delayed health interventions back into the health care system. The study should consider patient delays in obtaining preventive and primary health services, such as well-child care, prenatal care, screenings for cancer and chronic disease, behavioral health, and immunizations, in addition to delays in seeking urgent care or care for chronic illness.
Supporting documents
Committee: House Health Care Reform, Select
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, August 4, 2022
Library Call Number:
Session: 87th R.S. (2021)
Online version: View document [584 pages  File size: 53,345 kb]
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Border issues | Child abuse prevention | Child Protective Services | Coronavirus | Data management | Family and Protective Services, Texas Department of | Family preservation | Federal funds | Healthy Texas Women | Long-term care | Managed care | Medicaid | Medicare | Senior citizens | Services for persons with disabilities | Unaccompanied minors | Undocumented immigrants |
Library Call Number: L1836.87 H88
Session: 87th R.S. (2021)
Online version: View report [39 pages  File size: 2,582 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor the impact of children, including unaccompanied minors, crossing the Texas-Mexico border on the Department of Family and Protective Services child protective services programs. Consider ways to encourage consistent, transparent, and timely review of abuse and neglect of these children. Consider strategies to ensure better coordination and collaboration among local agencies, faith-based organizations, the private sector, non-profits, and law enforcement to reduce the incidence of abuse and neglect fatalities and human trafficking of migrating children. Identify any particularized services that these children will need and assess the costs of providing these services.
2. Review the ongoing development of federal laws, rules, and regulations associated with the distribution of the federal pandemic recovery funds, including reporting requirements, and make recommendations to the House Committee on Appropriations for use of the funds to respond to the Texas-Mexico border crisis.
3. Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 87th Legislature. Conduct active oversight of all associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure the intended legislative outcome of all legislation, including the following:
  • Legislation implementing the Healthy Families, Healthy Texas initiative, including:
    • HB133, 87th R.S. relating to the provision of benefits under Medicaid and the Healthy Texas Women program; and
    • Relevant provisions of HB 2658, 87th R.S. relating to the administration and operation of the Medicaid managed care program, especially those provisions that relate to continuous eligibility for a child for Medicaid; and
  • HB 3041, 87th R.S. related to the implementation of the Family Preservation Services Pilot Program.
4. Complete study of assigned charges related to the Texas-Mexico border issued in June 2021.
5. Evaluate current prevention and early intervention programs and make recommendations for improving the effectiveness of these programs in reducing child abuse and neglect.
6. Monitor implementation of SB 1, 87th R.S., Rider 30 (Health and Human Services Commission) and make recommendations for reducing the interest list for waiver services for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities and reducing associated staffing shortages.
7. Evaluate further action needed to improve the safety and quality of the foster care system, including preventing children in foster care from being without a placement and increasing recruitment of foster families. Identify methods to strengthen Child Protective Services processes and services, focusing on efforts for family preservation and eliminating fatalities within the foster care system. This evaluation should:
  • Study the causes for children without placement;
  • Assess the safety concerns for children without placement, including the use of out-of- state and temporary emergency placement for children without placement; injuries while in the care of Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) employees; and exposure to child sex trafficking; and
  • Study how and why children without placement frequently enter the juvenile justice and adult criminal justice systems and the steps DFPS is taking to identify and prevent these instances.
8. Assess the quality and effectiveness of the DFPS IMPACT system for security, transparency, and accuracy. Review DFPS processes relating to the integrity of digital case management. Evaluate whether DFPS data collection adequately responds to child wellbeing indicators.
9. Examine the long-term services and support system of care in Texas. Study workforce challenges for both institutional and community services. Assess opportunities to improve patient safety at senior living facilities. Consider mechanisms to promote a stable, sustainable, and quality-based long-term care system to address current and future needs of the state.
10. Monitor federal decisions that may impact the delivery and financial stability of the state's health programs, including: the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ rescission of its prior approval of the State’s 1115 Waiver, the state and federal negotiations of the Medicaid directed payment programs (including hospital finance methods), federal changes to the Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Program and the exclusion of certain costs from the uncompensated care program authorized through the 1115 Waiver.
Supporting documents
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Committee meeting testimony, June 28, 2022
Library Call Number:
Session: 87th R.S. (2021)
Online version: View document [150 pages  File size: 611 kb]
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Coronavirus | Electronic cigarettes | Medicaid |
Library Call Number: L1836.86 H349
Session: 86th R.S. (2019)
Online version: View report [52 pages  File size: 3,965 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Health Care Costs: Examine the state health and human services finance system including, but not limited to, the following programs and methods of finance: Local Provider Participation Funds, the Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment Program, Medicaid 1115 waivers and Section 1332 State Innovation waivers, Pay for Quality programs, the Quality Incentive Payment Program, and other state and local funding used to finance health care systems in Texas. Identify ways to streamline functions and reduce unnecessarily burdensome and costly requirements in the Texas Medicaid program. Provide recommendations to ensure the sustainability of the state's health and human services system and judicious use of taxpayer dollars.
2. Public Health: Examine the emerging public health concerns from the rise in e-cigarette use and "vaping," especially among minors. Determine if additional policies or laws are needed to protect the public's health.
3. Analyze the procedures for collecting, modeling, and reporting data on COVID-19 tests, cases, hospitalizations, and fatalities. Examine the role of state agencies, local governments, and private entities.
4. Examine clinical best practices, including therapeutics, for treating COVID-19 patients at each stage of the disease. Monitor the status of vaccine development and distribution.
5. Evaluate the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency and the impact of the COVID-19 response on behavioral health, child abuse, family violence, long-term care residents, and delayed medical care.
6. Evaluate the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency and the impact of the COVID-19 response on behavioral health, child abuse, family violence, long-term care residents, and delayed medical care.
Supporting documents
Committee: House Appropriations
Title: Subcommittee on Disaster Impact and Recovery, subcommittee meeting handouts and testimony, April 18, 2018 (Economic Stabilization Fund)
Library Call Number:
Session: 85th R.S. (2017)
Online version: View document [209 pages  File size: 12,113 kb]
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Child abuse | Child Protective Services | Emergency management | Employees Retirement System of Texas | Family and Protective Services, Texas Department of | Foster care | Health and Human Services Commission, Texas | Health care costs | Healthy Texas Women | Hurricane Harvey | Insurance, Texas Department of | Juvenile justice system | Managed care | Medicaid | Natural disasters | Opioids | Prescription drugs | Public health | State Health Services, Texas Department of | Substance abuse | Teacher Retirement System of Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.85 H349
Session: 85th R.S. (2017)
Online version: View report [98 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review the state's response to Hurricane Harvey with a focus on public health efforts at the local and state level. The review should include an analysis of the state and local response related to vector control, immunization needs, utilization of health-related volunteers, adequacy of an emergency medical network, evacuation of vulnerable populations from state operated or regulated facilities, and coordination between all levels of government. Recommend any legislative changes necessary to improve public health response and coordination during and after a disaster.
2. Evaluate the impact of Hurricane Harvey on the capacity of out-of-home placements and care for youth involved with the juvenile justice and child welfare systems. Determine how the state can ensure support is available to provide appropriate care as close to home as possible as facilities and offices are rebuilt.
3. Child Welfare: Review the efficacy and quality of services offered to ensure family preservation while in the Family Based Social Services (FESS) stage of service at the Department of Family and Protective Services. Make recommendations to better track quality of services and link payments to providers of these services to outcomes for families and children. Analyze the Department of Family and Protective Services' progress in meeting statutory requirements related to timely visits to children involved in a reported case of abuse or neglect. Make recommendations to further improve the timeliness of these visits. Review services and supports provided to children in Permanent Managing Conservatorship of the state, and the level of preparedness given to youth aging out of state care. Examine the impact of recent legislation related to these populations, and make recommendations to ensure youth in care are ready for adulthood and to reduce the likelihood of intergenerational perpetuation of child maltreatment. Assess the effectiveness of public and private agency efforts to recruit and retain foster parents. Identify barriers to entry and obstacles that prevent interested families from continuing to provide foster care. Recommend solutions to increase foster recruitment and address non-renewals, especially in first-time foster parents.
4. Substance Abuse/Opioids: Review substance use prevention, intervention, and recovery programs operated or funded by the state and make recommendations to enhance services, outreach, and agency coordination. Examine the adequacy of substance use, services for pregnant and postpartum women enrolled in Medicaid or the Healthy Texas Women Program and recommend ways to improve substance use related health outcomes for these women and their newborns. Examine the impact of recent legislative efforts to curb overprescribing and doctor shopping via the prescription monitoring program and recommend ways to expand on current efforts.
5. Medicaid Managed Care Quality and Compliance: Review the Health and Human Services Commission's efforts to improve quality and efficiency in the Medicaid program, including pay-for-quality initiatives in Medicaid managed care. Compare alternative payment models and value-based payment arrangements with providers in Medicaid managed care, the Employees Retirement System, and the Teachers Retirement System, and identify areas for cross-collaboration and coordination among these entities. Evaluate the commission's efforts to ensure Medicaid managed care organizations' compliance with contractual obligations and the use of incentives and sanctions to enforce compliance. Assess the commission's progress in implementing competitive bidding practices for Medicaid managed care contracts and other initiatives to ensure the best value for taxpayer dollars used in Medicaid managed care contracts.
6. Health Care Cost Transparency: Study efforts by the Department of State Health Services and the Texas Department of Insurance to increase health care cost transparency, including a review of the Texas Health Care Information Collection (THCIC) system, and the Consumer Guide to Healthcare. Recommend ways to make provider and facility fees more accessible to consumers to improve health care cost transparency, increase quality of care, and create a more informed health care consumer base.
7. Monitoring Charge: Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services, 85th Legislature and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation, including but not limited to:
• Initiatives to increase capacity and reduce waitlists in the mental health system, including the construction of state hospitals and new community grant programs;
• Initiatives to better understand the causes of maternal mortality and morbidity, including the impact of legislation passed during the first special session of the 85th Legislature. Recommend ways to improve health outcomes for pregnant women and methods to better collect data related to maternal mortality and morbidity;
• Initiatives intended to improve child safety, Child Protective Services workforce retention, and development of additional capacity in the foster care system. Make additional recommendations to ensure children with high levels of medical or mental health needs receive timely access to services in the least restrictive setting;
• Efforts to transfer case management of foster children and families to Single Source Continuum Contractors (SSCCs). Monitor the progress of this transition and make recommendations to ensure the process provides continuity of services for children and families and ongoing community engagement;
• Initiatives to strengthen oversight of long-term care facilities to ensure safety and improve quality for residents and clients of these entities; and
• Abortion complications and other reporting legislation that was passed by the 85th Legislature.
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Adoption | Assisted living facilities | Child abuse | Child abuse prevention | Child Protective Services | Early childhood intervention | Emergency management | Family preservation | Foster care | Hurricane Harvey | Long-term care | Managed care | Medicaid | Medicaid program management | Mentally ill persons | Natural disasters | Nursing homes | Pharmaceutical industry | Prescription drugs | State supported living centers | Substance abuse | Tropical storms |
Library Call Number: L1836.85 H88
Session: 85th R.S. (2017)
Online version: View report [50 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study the impact of Hurricane Harvey and the response to the storm on individuals living in long-term care facilities, assisted living facilities, state supported living centers, licensed community group homes, and children in the foster care system. Identify and recommend necessary solutions to ensure appropriate disaster-related protocols are in place to keep vulnerable Texans protected. Also, identify any challenges state agencies experienced in responding to the storm or during recovery efforts.
2. Review the history and any future roll-out of Medicaid Managed Care in Texas. Determine the impact managed care has had on the quality and cost of care. In the review, determine: initiatives that managed care organizations (MCOs) have implemented to improve quality of care; whether access to care and network adequacy contractual requirements are sufficient; and whether MCOs have improved the coordination of care. Also determine provider and Medicaid participants’ satisfaction within STAR, STAR Health, Star Kids, and STAR+Plus managed care programs. In addition, review the Health and Human Services Commission's (HHSC) oversight of managed care organizations, and make recommendations for any needed improvement.
3. Examine the survey process for nursing facilities to determine any duplication of government regulations. Consider recommendations to reduce duplication while ensuring patient safety is preserved.
4. Review the availability of prevention and early intervention programs and determine their effectiveness in reducing maltreatment of children. In addition, review services available to children emancipating out of foster care, as well as services available to families post-adoption. Determine if current services are adequately providing for children's needs and meeting the objectives of the programs. While reviewing possible system improvements for children, follow the work of the Supreme Court of Texas Children's Commissions' Statewide Collaborative of Trauma-Informed Care to determine how trauma-informed care impacts outcomes for children.
5. Analyze the prevalence of children involved with Child Protective Services (CPS) who have a mental illness and/or a substance use disorder. In addition, analyze the prevalence of children involved with CPS due to their guardian's substance abuse or because of an untreated mental illness. Identify methods to strengthen CPS processes and services, including efforts for family preservation; increasing the number of appropriate placements designed for children with high needs; and ensuring Texas Medicaid is providing access to appropriate and effective behavioral health services. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Public Health)
6. Monitor the HHSC's implementation of Rider 219 in Article II of the General Appropriations Act related to prescription drug benefit administration in Medicaid. Analyze the role of pharmacy benefit managers in Texas Medicaid.
7. Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 85th Legislature. In conducting this oversight, the committee will also closely monitor the implementation of H.B. 4 (85R), H.B. 5 (85R), H.B. 7 (85R), and S.B. 11 (85R).
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Affordable housing | Alzheimer's disease | Child Protective Services | Children's mental health | Dementia | Family preservation | Homelessness | Housing | Maternal mortality | Medicaid | Mental health services | Mentally ill persons | Organ and tissue donations | Rural areas | Rural health care | Substance abuse | Telemedicine | Transitional housing | Women's health |
Library Call Number: L1836.85 H349h
Session: 85th R.S. (2017)
Online version: View report [125 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review state programs that provide women’s health services and recommend solutions to increase access to effective and timely care. During the review, identify services provided in each program, the number of providers and clients participating in the programs, and the enrollment and transition process between programs. Monitor the work of the Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Task Force and recommend solutions to reduce maternal deaths and morbidity. In addition, review the correlation between pre-term and low birth weight births and the use of alcohol and tobacco. Consider options to increase treatment options and deter usage of these substances.
2. Study treatment of traumatic brain injury, Alzheimer's, and dementia, and recommend opportunities for advancing treatment and cures.
3. Study and make recommendations to improve services available for identifying and treating children with mental illness, including the application of trauma- and grief-informed practices. Identify strategies to assist in understanding the impact and recognizing the signs of trauma in children and providing school-based or community-based mental health services to children who need them. Analyze the role of the Texas Education Agency and of the regional Education Service Centers regarding mental health. In addition, review programs that treat early psychosis among youth and young adults.
4. Study the overlays among housing instability, homelessness, and mental illness. Review the availability of supportive housing opportunities for individuals with mental illness. Consider options to address housing stability and homelessness among people with mental illness. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Urban Affairs)
5. Review opportunities to improve population health and health care delivery in rural and urban medically underserved areas. Identify potential opportunities to improve access to care, including the role of telemedicine. In the review, identify the challenges facing rural hospitals and the impact of rural hospital closures.
6. Analyze the prevalence of children involved with Child Protective Services (CPS) who have a mental illness and/or a substance use disorder. In addition, analyze the prevalence of children involved with CPS due to their guardian's substance abuse or because of an untreated mental illness. Identify methods to strengthen CPS processes and services, including efforts for family preservation; increasing the number of appropriate placements designed for children with high needs; and ensuring Texas Medicaid is providing access to appropriate and effective behavioral health services. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Human Services)
7. Evaluate the process of organ and bone marrow donations. Consider opportunities to improve organ and bone marrow donation awareness in order to increase the number of willing donors.
8. Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 85th Legislature. In conducting this oversight, the Committee will also specifically closely monitor the implementation of H.B. 10 (85R), H.B. 13 (85R), and S.B. 292 (85R).
9. Consider testimony provided at the May 17 House Public Health Committee hearing regarding improving mental health services for children. Identify specific strategies that would enhance overall school safety. Study ways to help parents, youth and primary care providers support school personnel in their efforts to identify and intervene early when mental health problems arise. In addition to school-based trauma-informed programs and those that treat early psychosis, consider the benefits of universal screening tools and expanding the Child Psychiatry Access Program (CPAP). Make recommendations to enhance collaboration among the Health and Human Services Commission, the Texas Education Agency, local mental health authorities, and education service centers.
Supporting documents
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, August 9, 2018 (joint hearing with House Committee on Public Health).
Library Call Number:
Session: 85th R.S. (2017)
Online version: View document [87 pages  File size: 3,035 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Bail | Child abuse | Child Protective Services | County jails | County roads | Court costs and fees | Criminal justice | Criminal records | Electronic security | Emergency management | Fees | Indigent health care | Jail Standards, Texas Commission on | Managed care | Medicaid | Mentally ill inmates | Mentally ill persons | Natural disasters | Police officers | Suicide |
Library Call Number: L1836.84 C832
Session: 84th R.S. (2015)
Online version: View report [112 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review jail standards and procedures with regards to potentially mentally ill persons in county jails, as well as issues stemming from interactions between the general public and peace officers. *
2. Study the effectiveness and efficiency of current programs in Texas as well as best practices to determine how to decrease the risk and mitigate the impact of wildfires, floods, and other natural hazards in the wildland-urban interface. Examine the duties, performance, and jurisdictions of water districts, municipalities, Emergency Services Districts, other similar districts, and state offices like the Fire Marshal and Extension Services. Evaluate current regulations and identify best practices. Recommend approaches for hazard mitigation and response to natural disasters. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Urban Affairs)
3. Identify and address potential gaps in counties’ cybersecurity policies and ensure that personal information held by counties and other local governmental entities is secure.
4. Evaluate the Texas Commission on Jail Standards to determine if the Commission has the resources and structure to provide sufficient oversight, regulation, and enforcement over Texas county jails.
5. Review pretrial service and bonding practices throughout the state. Examine factors considered in bail and pre-trial confinement decisions, including the use of risk assessments; assess the effectiveness and efficiency of different systems in terms of cost to local governments and taxpayers, community safety, pretrial absconding rates and rights of the accused. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence)
6. Study the implications and effects on law enforcement agencies and individuals that stem from the publication, republication, or other dissemination for public internet access of mug shots and other criminal history information regarding involvement of an individual in the criminal justice system.
7. Study statutorily mandated services provided by sheriffs and constables, and determine whether fee schedules allow cost recovery without placing undue burdens on recipients of those services.
8. Study the effect of Proposition 5 (SJR 17 (84R)) on the quality of private roadways in counties with a population of less than 7,500. Make recommendations to ensure the amendment does not result in undue competition between counties and private industry, and whether additional counties could benefit from a similar authorization.
9. Conduct legislative oversight and monitoring of the agencies and programs under the committee’s jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 84th Legislature. In conducting this oversight, the committee should: a. consider any reforms to state agencies to make them more responsive to Texas taxpayers and citizens; b. identify issues regarding the agency or its governance that may be appropriate to investigate, improve, remedy, or eliminate; c. determine whether an agency is operating in a transparent and efficient manner; and d. identify opportunities to streamline programs and services while maintaining the mission of the agency and its programs.
Supporting documents
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, May 16, 2016, 10:00 A.M. (1115 transformation waiver, Child Protective Services)
Library Call Number:
Session: 84th R.S. (2015)
Online version: View document [60 pages  File size: 16,566 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, June 10, 2016 (County cybersecurity, Child Protective Services)
Library Call Number:
Session: 84th R.S. (2015)
Online version: View document [22 pages  File size: 822 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, July 7, 2016 (Child Protective Services, 1115 transformation waiver, County cybersecurity)
Library Call Number:
Session: 84th R.S. (2015)
Online version: View document [55 pages  File size: 3,050 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, August 4, 2016 (Child Protective Services, Debtors prisons, 1115 transformation waiver)
Library Call Number:
Session: 84th R.S. (2015)
Online version: View document [72 pages  File size: 14,626 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, August 29, 2016 (1115 transformation waiver, Child Protective Services, County cybersecurity, Bexar County justice-involved veterans unit)
Library Call Number:
Session: 84th R.S. (2015)
Online version: View document [88 pages  File size: 10,919 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, November 16, 2016 (Department of Public Safety and criminal justice reform, Child Protective Services)
Library Call Number:
Session: 84th R.S. (2015)
Online version: View document [276 pages  File size: 31,098 kb]
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Abortion | Adoption | Adult day care | Assisted living facilities | Birth defects | Child abuse | Child abuse prevention | Child Protective Services | Family and Protective Services, Texas Department of | Foster care | Liability | Long-term care | Managed care | Medicaid | Mental health services | Mentally ill inmates | Nursing homes | Office of Inspector General, Health and Human Services Commission, Texas | Organ and tissue donations | Planned Parenthood | Pregnancy | Refugees and asylees | Senior citizens | Services for persons with disabilities | State employee turnover | Sunset review process | Telemedicine | Women's health |
Library Call Number: L1836.84 H349
Session: 84th R.S. (2015)
Online version: View report [152 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Examine the business practices and regulatory structure of Planned Parenthood affiliates in Texas, and investigate whether state or federal laws are being broken by Planned Parenthood and/or its affiliates in Texas in regards to the donation and/or sale of fetal tissue. Consider recommendations to strengthen regulations on abortion providers, including further restrictions on the sale of fetal tissue by these entities. *
2. Protecting the Unborn: Part I: Examine and make recommendations on the use of fetal tissue provided for research purposes and how related laws governing abortion procedures are interpreted and enforced. Part II: Examine the cause of action known as “wrongful birth.” The study should examine (1) its history in Texas, (2) its effect on the practice of medicine, and (3) its effect on children with disabilities and their families. Examine related measures proposed or passed in other states.
3. Protection of Children Part I: Reducing Recurrence of Child Abuse and Neglect: Examine the current process that Child Protective Services uses to track recurrence of child abuse and neglect, and make recommendations to improve data tracking and the use of that data to assist in preventing recurrence. The study should examine the differences in recurrence among families who received services, families who received no services and had their cases closed, and families who had their children removed from the home. Part II: Addressing High-Acuity Needs of Foster Care Children: Study the increase in higher acuity children with trauma and mental illness in the state foster care system, and recommend ways to ensure children have timely access to appropriate treatment and placement options. Part III: Strengthening Adoptions: Examine the frequency, causes, and effects of disrupted foster care adoptions and make recommendations to improve the long-term success of adoptive placements. Study and make recommendations on ways to ensure a smooth transition for foster care children who are exiting the system.
4. Healthy Aging: Part I: Study and make recommendations on innovative methods and best practices to promote healthy aging for the state’s population and reduce chronic medical and behavioral health conditions. Identify opportunities for improved collaboration to promote healthy aging in the health and human services system at the state, regional and local levels. Part II: Examine and recommend ways to improve quality and oversight in long-term care settings, including nursing homes and ICF/HCS programs. Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services during the 84th Regular Session related to the revocation of nursing home licenses for repeated serious violations.
5. Medicaid Reform and State Innovation: Study the impact of the Section 1115 Texas Healthcare Transformation and Quality Improvement Program Waiver on improving health outcomes, reducing costs, and providing access to health care for the uninsured, and monitor the renewal process of the waiver. Explore other mechanisms and make recommendations to control costs and increase quality and efficiency in the Medicaid program, including the pursuit of a block grant or a Section 1332 Medicaid State Innovation Waiver for the existing Medicaid program.
6. Inpatient Mental Health System Reform: Study and make recommendations on establishing collaborative partnerships between state-owned mental health hospitals and university health science centers to improve inpatient state mental health services, maximize the state mental health workforce, and reduce healthcare costs.
7. Mental Health Diversion and Forensic Capacity: Study the impact of recent efforts by the legislature to divert individuals with serious mental illness from criminal justice settings and prevent recidivism. Study and make recommendations to address the state's ongoing need for inpatient forensic capacity, including the impact of expanding community inpatient psychiatric beds.
8. Improving Access to Care through TeleHealth: Study and make recommendations on the appropriate use, scope and application of tele-monitoring and telemedicine services to improve management and outcomes for adults and children with complex medical needs and for persons confined in correctional facilities. Examine barriers to implementation of these services and any impact on access to health care services in rural areas of the state.
9. Review of Refugee Resettlement Program: Study the impact to the state of the increasing number of refugees relocating to Texas, including the range of health and human services provided. Examine the authority of the state to reduce its burden under the Refugee Resettlement Program, and any state-funded services.
10. Monitoring Charge: Monitor the implementation of legislation and riders related to health and human services that were considered by the 84th R.S. and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation, including but not limited to: ? The impact of changes made by the Department of Family and Protective Services, Child Protective Services on child safety, workforce retention, prevention, and permanency; ? Initiatives to reduce Medicaid fraud, waste and abuse, and other cost containment strategies, including examining the processes and procedures used by managed care organizations to address Medicaid fraud, waste and abuse; and The consolidation and expansion of women's health programs at the Health and Human Services Commission.
Committee: Joint Aging
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Aging and Disability Services, Texas Department of | Alzheimer's disease | Long-term care | Medicaid | Medicare | Nursing homes | Senior citizens |
Library Call Number: L1836.83 Ag47
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View report [25 pages]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Study issues relating to the aging population of Texas, including health care, income, transportation, housing, education, and employment.
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Counties | County jails | Ebola | Emergency management | Homelessness | Hospitals | Jail population | Jail Standards, Texas Commission on | Managed care | Marijuana | Medicaid | Mental health services | Population growth | Specialty courts | Veterans |
Library Call Number: L1836.83 C832
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View report [106 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Examine population growth in Texas counties and the impact the growth has had on housing, available land resources, businesses in Texas, as well as the impact of growth on the state's economy. Evaluate Texas's preparedness to respond to future growth and ensure economic stability.
2. Continue oversight of the Texas Commission on Jail Standards and issues jails currently face, including the mental health of those in jail, and make recommendations for refinement or improvement of processes and programs.
3. Monitor the health advisory panel stemming from HB 3793, 83rd R.S..
4. Determine which counties have implemented a cite-and-summons policy, whether the policy has been effective in lessening overcrowding in county jails, and whether those cited by peace officers comply with the policy.
5. Study the implementation of SB 462, 83rd R.S.. Examine which counties currently have veterans courts, as well as veterans courts in other states, and determine how those programs are working and whether these courts provide additional services or resources for veterans. Make appropriate recommendations. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Defense and Veterans' Affairs)
6. Conduct legislative oversight and monitoring of the agencies and programs under the committee’s jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 83rd Legislature. In conducting this oversight, the committee should: a. consider any reforms to state agencies to make them more responsive to Texas taxpayers and citizens; b. identify issues regarding the agency or its governance that may be appropriate to investigate, improve, remedy, or eliminate; c. determine whether an agency is operating in a transparent and efficient manner; and d. identify opportunities to streamline programs and services while maintaining the mission of the agency and its programs.
Supporting documents
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, March 10, 2014 (Population growth, Texas Commission on Jail Standards and county jails, HB 3793 mental health advisory panel, Medicaid 1115 waiver, veterans courts)
Library Catalog Title: Minutes
Library Call Number: L1801.9 C832 83 2014: MAR 10
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [170 pages  File size: 8,459 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, May 5, 2014 (Texas Commission on Jail Standards and county jails, HB 3793 mental health advisory panel, cite-and-summons policy, oversight of healthy community collaboratives)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [102 pages  File size: 9,604 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, May 15, 2014 (Medicaid 1115 waiver)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [220 pages  File size: 41,128 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, October 20, 2014 (Population growth, Texas Commission on Jail Standards and county jails, HB 3793 mental health advisory panel, emergency response preparedness/ebola)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [171 pages  File size: 12,739 kb]
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas | Child abuse | Child Protective Services | Computers and government | Contraceptives | Dental Examiners, Texas State Board of | Family planning | Foster care | Healthy Texas Women | Homelessness | Medicaid | Medicaid fraud | Medically uninsured | Mental health services | Mentally ill persons | Office of Inspector General, Health and Human Services Commission, Texas | Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act | Substance abuse | Temporary Assistance for Needy Families | Welfare eligibility | Welfare reform | Welfare-to-work | Women's health |
Library Call Number: L1836.83 H349
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View report [58 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review the Department of Family and Protective Services’ efforts to reduce child fatalities. Review the process by which the Department of Family and Protective Services collects and uses data to evaluate agency performance and improve outcomes for children in the Child Protective Services system. Make recommendations to ensure the process effectively uses data to strategically improve caseworker performance, and identify and improve upon deficiencies within the system and improve overall outcomes for children and reduce child fatalities.
2. Monitor the implementation of programs that were created or expanded by the 83rd Legislature to improve mental health and substance abuse services and assess these efforts' contribution to improved outcomes such as reduced recidivism in state hospitals, diversion from emergency rooms and county jails, and access to permanent supportive housing. Identify and address gaps in the current mental health and substance abuse system and make recommendations to better coordinate services across agencies and programs.
3. Build on previous legislative achievements in women's healthcare by examining women’s access to preventative health care, pregnancy services, and post-partum care, and exploring ways to expand access and improve quality, particularly in rural and underserved areas of the state. Monitor the implementation of women's health programs in Texas. Assess these programs' impact on outcomes such as improving access to preventative services, reducing unplanned pregnancies, and achieving cost savings. Recommend ways to better coordinate the various programs in a manner that increases the number of women served, ensures adequate provider capacity statewide, and maximizes efficiencies to the state.
4. Identify cost-effective alternatives to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act to better connect low income individuals to health care services through private market-based solutions, including Medicaid block grants and waivers. Recommendations should strive to encourage cost sharing, promote personal responsibility, reduce uncompensated care costs, contain increasing health care costs, improve access to care, address access to emergency department care issues in rural areas, promote the use of existing private coverage or employee sponsored coverage, reduce non-­?emergency use of emergency departments, and reduce the need for federal approval to the state Medicaid plan.
5. Evaluate the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program structure. Make recommendations to improve the program's operations and ensure the program achieves outcomes that allow TANF recipients to find employment and achieve self-sufficiency. Recommendations should seek to ensure Texas is using the most effective work-related requirements and drug testing protocols.
6. Evaluate the current state of prescription drug abuse and strategies for reducing prescription drug abuse in Texas. Make recommendations on how these policies can be improved or modified to enhance the State of Texas’ handling of services, treatments and education related to prescription drug abuse and to reduce the overall prevalence of prescription drug abuse.
7. Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services, 83rd Legislature, Regular Session, and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation, including but not limited to:
  • Monitor implementation of initiatives aimed at improving the quality and efficiency of Medicaid long-term care services and supports, including the redesign of services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
  • Monitor implementation of initiatives aimed at reducing fraud, waste, and abuse in Texas Medicaid and other health and human services programs.
  • Dental Board Reforms: Monitor implementation of initiatives aimed at improving the State Board of Dental Examiners' ability to protect public safety, including strengthening the Board's authority and enforcement powers, improving the complaint review and resolution processes, and increasing staffing to improve the Board's ability to respond to complaints and potential fraudulent activity. Determine whether there are additional changes necessary to ensure that the Board is able to regulate the practice of dentistry and ensure public safety.
  • Cancer Prevention and Research Institute: Monitor implementation of initiatives aimed at restructuring the governance structure, eliminating conflicts of interest, and increasing transparency at the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT).
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Foster care | Government transparency | Higher education | Medicaid | Mental health services | Mentally disabled persons | Mentally ill persons | STAR+PLUS program | Student aid |
Library Call Number: L1836.83 H88
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View report [67 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Examine crisis resources for individuals with co-occurring mental illness and intellectual/developmental disabilities. Identify strategies to serve individuals with complex behavioral and medical needs in the community.
2. Monitor the implementation of Foster Care Redesign. Evaluate its impact on the child welfare system in areas of the state where redesign is underway, including transition from the legacy system, foster family retention and recruitment, placement stability, permanency, and child safety.
3. Monitor and evaluate implementation of SB 7, 83rd R.S., including agency preparations for the statewide rollout of STAR+PLUS.
4. Former foster youth have the benefit of free tuition and fees if they enroll in higher education, yet very few take advantage of this opportunity. Consider new strategies to support these youth and make recommendations to enroll and retain more foster youth in higher education. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Higher Education)
5. Conduct legislative oversight and monitoring of the agencies and programs under the committee’s jurisdiction, including implementation of the Balancing Incentives Program and relevant legislation passed by the 83rd Legislature. In conducting this oversight, the committee should: a. consider any reforms to state agencies to make them more responsive to Texas taxpayers and citizens; b. identify issues regarding the agency or its governance that may be appropriate to investigate, improve, remedy, or eliminate; c. determine whether an agency is operating in a transparent and efficient manner; and d. identify opportunities to streamline programs and services while maintaining the mission of the agency and its programs.
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Abandoned property | Alternatives to incarceration | Councils of government | County budgets | County government | County jails | County roads | Jail Standards, Texas Commission on | Medicaid |
Library Call Number: L1836.82 C832
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View report [13 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study county-related issues arising from population growth in unincorporated areas with regard to existing and new developments and the provision of services, including garbage disposal, fire protection, road maintenance, electricity, and water and wastewater service. Make necessary legislative recommendations for improving problems in these areas of the state.
2. Study opportunities for cost savings through the abolishment of certain elected offices or the consolidation of county services.
3. Conduct a general study of issues facing county jails. The study should include innovative ways to address overcrowding, the impact homelessness has on the county jail population, and recommendations for handling inmates undergoing detoxification and withdrawal from drugs and alcohol.
4. Monitor the agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 82nd Legislature.
Supporting documents
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, September 18, 2012 (Population growth, county jails, Texas Healthcare Transformation Waiver and Quality Improvement Waiver update)
Library Call Number:
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View document [53 pages  File size: 3,859 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, October 24, 2012 (Population growth, Texas Healthcare Transformation Waiver and Quality Improvement Waiver update, Councils of Governments)
Library Call Number:
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View document [164 pages  File size: 18,396 kb]
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas | Caseworkers | Child Protective Services | Children's Health Insurance Program | Dental care | Foster care | Health care | Health care costs | Health insurance | Immunizations | Long-term care | Managed care | Medicaid | Medicaid eligibility | Medical research | Mental health services | Nursing homes | Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act | Public health | State Health Services, Texas Department of | State supported living centers |
Library Call Number: L1836.82 H349
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View report [186 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor the potential impact of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) on insurance regulations, Medicaid and CHIP, health care outcomes and overall health of all Texans, and the state budget in Texas. Additionally, monitor the current constitutional challenges to PPACA and other court cases associated with PPACA, and ensure that the state does not expend any resources until judicial direction is clear. (Joint charge with Senate State Affairs Committee)
2. Monitor the potential impact of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) on insurance regulations, Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), health care outcomes, health care workforce, overall health of all Texans, and the state budget in Texas. Additionally, monitor the current constitutional challenges to PPACA, and other court cases associated with PPACA, and ensure that the state does not expend any resources until judicial direction is clear. (Joint charge with Senate State Affairs Committee)
3. Evaluate the implementation of cost-containment strategies across the Health and Human Services Enterprise to determine if and how each strategy can be expanded upon to achieve additional savings next biennium. The evaluation should include but is not limited to: the expansion of managed care, co-­pays in Medicaid, electronic visit verification, and independent assessments for long-­? term care services. The evaluation should also consider new cost-containment strategies that will increase efficiencies and reduce costs. This evaluation should include but not be limited to: Medicaid, Early Childhood Intervention Services, and immunizations.
4. Review the state's current investment in health care innovation, including translational research and the Cancer Prevention Research Institute, which focuses on rapid transfer of new technology experimentation directly into the clinical environment. Make recommendations to improve the health of Texans and encourage continued medical research in the most cost-effective manner possible.
5. Review existing policies for prior authorization and medical necessity review across the Medicaid Program, including nursing homes and orthodontic services. Make recommendations on how these policies could be improved to save money by reducing unnecessary utilization and fraud.
6. Review the Medicaid Home and Community Based Services Waivers to identify strategies to lower costs, improve quality, and increase access to services. Areas of the review should include, but are not limited to:
  • Functional eligibility determinations to ensure services are only being delivered to individuals that qualify;
  • Financial eligibility determinations to ensure parental income and resources are considered when the client is a minor;
  • Coordination of acute and long-term care services;
  • Development and use of lower-cost community care waiver options;
  • Coordination with the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) for waiver services for children in conservatorships;
  • Reinvesting savings into accessibility of community care for individuals waiting for services.
7. Evaluate the management structure and supervision of CPS caseworkers with an emphasis on rural areas. Identify any legislative changes that could assist DFPS in maximizing efficiency, improving quality casework and supervision, and increasing caseworker retention. Identify any legislative changes that could improve the quality of care children receive while in Child Protective Services custody, including improving permanency outcomes.
8. Examine the delivery and financing of public health services in our state, including how federal funds are distributed by the state to local health departments and whether the work done by Regional Health Departments operated by the Department of State Health Services overlap unnecessarily with local health departments.
9. Review the state's public mental health system and make recommendations to improve access, service utilization, patient outcomes and system efficiencies. Study current service delivery models for outpatient and inpatient care, funding levels, financing methodologies, services provided, and available community-based alternatives to hospitalization. The review should look to other states for best practices or models that may be successful in Texas. The study shall also review and recommend "best value" practices that the state's public mental health system may implement to maximize the use of federal, state, and local funds.
10. Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation, including but not limited to:
  • Health Care Quality and Efficiency - Monitor implementation of initiatives aimed at improving health care quality and efficiency in Texas, including: the transition of Medicaid and the CHIP to quality-based payments, establishment of the Texas Institute of Health Care Quality and Efficiency, implementation of the Health Care Collaborative certificate, patient-centered medical home for high-cost populations, development and use of potentially preventable event outcome measures, and reduction of health care-associated infections. Include recommendations on how to improve and build upon these initiatives, including improving birth outcomes and reducing infant and maternal mortality;
  • Federal Flexibility - Monitor implementation of initiatives to increase state flexibility, including the Health Care Compact and the Medicaid Demonstration Waiver;
  • Foster Care Redesign - Monitor implementation of the initiative to redesign the foster care system;
  • Implementation of DOJ Settlement agreement to address State Supported Living Center concerns.
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Child nutrition programs | Diet and nutrition | Food banks | Food stamps | Foster care | Health maintenance organizations | Hunger | Long-term care | Medicaid | Medical reimbursements | Senior citizens |
Library Call Number: L1836.82 H88
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View report [57 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor the implementation of Foster Care Redesign. Evaluate the mechanisms for monitoring and oversight, including rates, contracts, and client outcomes.
2. Identify policies to alleviate food insecurity, increase access to healthy foods, and incent good nutrition within existing food assistance programs. Consider initiatives in Texas and other states to eliminate food deserts and grocery gaps, encourage urban agriculture and farmers' markets, and increase participation in the Summer Food Program. Evaluate the desirability and feasibility of incorporating nutritional standards in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Monitor congressional activity on the 2012 Farm Bill and consider its impact on Texas. (Joint with the House Committee on Public Health)
3. Explore strategies, including those in other states, to support the needs of aging Texans, including best practices in nursing home diversion, expedited access to community services, and programs to assist seniors and their families in navigating the long-term care system, with the goal of helping seniors remain in the community. Assess the feasibility of leveraging volunteer-supported initiatives using existing infrastructure to enhance the ability of seniors to remain active and involved.
4. Monitor the agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 82nd Legislature, including the implementation of managed care in South Texas.
5. Study and make recommendations for significantly improving the state's manufacturing capability.
6. Find ways to increase transparency, accountability and efficiency in state government.
Committee: Joint Medicaid Reform Waiver, Legislative Oversight
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Medicaid |
Library Call Number: L1836.82 M468
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View report [10 pages]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Facilitate the design and development of the Medicaid reform waiver; facilitate a smooth transition from existing Medicaid payment systems and benefit designs to a new model of Medicaid enabled by waiver.
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Dental care | Dental Examiners, Texas State Board of | Farms and farming | Food safety | Food stamps | Health care costs | Hunger | Medicaid | Medical education | Medical records | Nurse practitioners | Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act | Physician assistants | Physician shortages | Property tax exemptions | Public health | School nutrition | Small farms | State hospitals |
Library Call Number: L1836.82 H349h
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View report [66 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Examine the adequacy of the primary care workforce in Texas and assess the impact of an aging population, the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and state and federal funding reductions to graduate medical education and physician loan repayment programs. Study the potential impact of medical school innovations, new practice models, alternative reimbursement strategies, expanded roles for physician extenders, and greater utilization of telemedicine. Make recommendations to increase patient access to primary care and address geographic disparities.
2. Study the various health registries maintained by the state, including the similarities and differences in reporting, consent, security, and portability of data. Assess registry compliance with standards for the protection and transmission of registry data and identify any additional steps necessary to ensure security, efficiency, and utilization.
3. Monitor implementation of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, including any changes that may result from ongoing litigation or legislative modification or repeal. (Joint with the House Committee on Insurance)
4. Identify policies to alleviate food insecurity, increase access to healthy foods, and incent good nutrition within existing food assistance programs. Consider initiatives in Texas and other states to eliminate food deserts and grocery gaps, encourage urban agriculture and farmers' markets, and increase participation in the Summer Food Program. Evaluate the desirability and feasibility of incorporating nutritional standards in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Monitor congressional activity on the 2012 Farm Bill and consider its impact on Texas. (Joint with the House Committee on Human Services)
5. Monitor the agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 82nd Legislature.
Supporting documents
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, January 24, 2012 (Charge 5, Interagency implementation of HB 300 and SB 7, agency implementation of legislation, Healthcare Transformation and Quality Improvement Program Waiver, Medicaid orthodontics, state hospital patient safety)
Library Call Number:
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View document [118 pages  File size: 14,012 kb]
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, February 27, 2012 (Charge 3, Affordable Care Act, Joint hearing with Insurance)
Library Call Number:
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View document [86 pages  File size: 4,718 kb]
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, April 11, 2012 (Charge 5, Board of Dental Examiners; Charge 2, State health registries)
Library Call Number:
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View document [212 pages  File size: 10,924 kb]
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, May 15, 2012 (1115 Health Transformation Waiver; Charge 1, Primary care workforce)
Library Call Number:
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View document [196 pages  File size: 9,926 kb]
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, October 15, 2012 (Charge 5, Healthcare Transformation and Quality Improvement Program Waiver, delivery of dental services in Medicaid)
Library Call Number:
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View document [176 pages  File size: 8,674 kb]
Committee: Senate State Affairs
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Consumer credit and debt | Eminent domain | Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 | Employees Retirement System of Texas | Federal government | Firefighters | Forest Service, Texas A&M | Health insurance | Health insurance exchanges | Liability | Medicaid | Military personnel | Municipalities | Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act | Peace officers | Primary elections | Property rights | Public retirement systems | Public Safety, Texas Department of | State employee benefits | State employee turnover | States' rights | Statutes of limitation | Teacher Retirement System of Texas | Voting by mail | Voting systems | Wildfires | Workers' compensation | Zoning |
Library Call Number: L1836.82 St29a
Session: 82nd R.S. (2011)
Online version: View report [177 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study the policies and actions the State can pursue to preserve state authority and protect Texas citizens from federal overreach in the form of conditional federal grants, conditional federal preemption, and excessive legislation and regulation interfering with states' enumerated powers by Congress.
2. Examine the Texas Workers' Compensation system and make recommendations for changes to meet the needs of Texas employers and employees. Specifically, review the following:
  • the dispute resolution process and benefits available from employers that do not subscribe to workers compensation;
  • the adequacy of income benefits in the workers’ compensation system, specifically on high?wage earners receiving the maximum compensation rate;
  • identify and report on fatalities in the Workers’ Compensation System, including the amount of death and burial benefits paid to beneficiaries and the Subsequent Injury Fund since 2000;
  • the return-­to-­work numbers and results for injured employees in the Workers’ Compensation System that are referred to the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services.
3. Study the feasibility and fiscal impact to consumers of altering the insurance code to allow for the purchase of health insurance across state lines.
4. Monitor the potential impact of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) on insurance regulations, Medicaid and CHIP, health care outcomes and overall health of all Texans, and the state budget in Texas. Additionally, monitor the current constitutional challenges to PPACA and other court cases associated with PPACA, and ensure that the state does not expend any resources until judicial direction is clear. (Joint charge with Senate Health & Human Services Committee)
5. Study and make recommendations on statutory provisions and judicial decisions relating to the statute of limitations on a cause of action relating to consumer debt.
6. Examine establishing a workforce retention program or deferred retirement option plan (DROP) for Texas Department of Public Safety commissioned peace officers and whether any plan can be built with actuarially sustainable factors while meeting the needs of officers.
7. Examine the feasibility of implementing Health Reimbursement Accounts and Medicare exchanges for Medicare eligible participants currently covered by and receiving health coverage through the Employees Retirement System, the Teachers Retirement System, the University of Texas, and Texas A&M University. Identify any cost savings to the state and to retirees that would occur under such a plan.
8. Consider the costs and benefits of the creation of liability protection for private companies and individuals when commissioned by the Texas Forest Service to assist in fighting a fire that is not on the company's or individual's own land. Examine whether state policy should prohibit an employer from terminating an employee who is a volunteer firefighter on the grounds that the employee missed work because the employee was responding to an emergency. Identify any appropriate limitations that should apply to such a policy.
9. Examine the effectiveness of the Private Real Property Rights Preservation Act (Chapter 2007, Government Code), and whether it should apply to municipalities.
10. Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on State Affairs, 82nd Legislature, Regular and Called Sessions, and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation. Specifically, monitor the following:
  • implementation of SB 100, relating to the implementation of the MOVE Act, and the impact on local and statewide elections and military voters;
  • implementation of the Interstate Health Care Compact.
Committee: House Federal Legislation, Select
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Children's Health Insurance Program | Federal government | Health insurance | Medicaid |
Library Call Number: L1836.81 F318
Session: 81st R.S. (2009)
Online version: View report [20 pages  File size: 860 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Review and monitor significant pending federal legislation to the extent such legislation preempts state authority. In addition, the committee shall monitor the implementation of unfunded mandates, including those that could violate the federal Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995. The committee's work should include monitoring Congress's health care reform efforts and their potential impact on the state's health care system, health insurance regulation statutes and policies, Medicaid and children's health insurance programs, eligibility system, workforce recruitment and retention, and health care financing mechanisms.
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report to the 82nd Legislature
Subjects: Adult Protective Services | Aging and Disability Services, Texas Department of | At-risk youth | Child abuse | Children's Health Insurance Program | Cloning | Crime prevention | Diet and nutrition | Emergency management | Families | Family and Protective Services, Texas Department of | Family violence | Federal government | Foster care | H1N1 virus | Health care | Health care providers | Health insurance | Human services | Long-term care | Medicaid | Medicaid eligibility | Medical Board, Texas | Medical errors | Medical research | Mental health services | Mentally ill persons | Nurses | Obesity | Physicians | Quality of care | Senior citizens | Services for persons with disabilities | State budgets | Stem cell research | Texas Integrated Eligibility Redesign System |
Library Call Number: L1836.81 H349
Session: 81st R.S. (2009)
Online version: View report [272 pages  File size: 6,511 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Upon passage of federal legislation relating to reform of the health care industry and health insurance industry that the Texas Health and Human Services Commission estimates will costs the State of Texas $2 to 2.5 billion per year in General Revenue beginning as early as 2013, study the implications of such legislation on Texas, the health care industry, and public and private insurance. Study and monitor the implementation of the insurance regulatory changes, changes to high risk pool, and any other insurance mandates. Study the health care policy changes and the impact to the Medicaid and CHIP programs and the state budget. Assess the impact to all state uninsured and uncompensated care programs and county programs for the uninsured, including county property tax programs to pay for the uninsured. Make recommendations for the efficient implementation of programs. (Joint charge with Senate State Affairs Committee)
2. Study the benefits, efficiencies and costs, and effectiveness of the social service related prevention and early intervention programs at the health and human services agencies, the juvenile and adult criminal justice agencies and other government agencies that have programs that address mental illness, substance abuse, child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, single-parent families, absentee fathers, early pregnancy, and unemployment. Study other states' prevention programs and efforts to administer these programs through a merged prevention department. Make recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of these programs.
3. Review the timeliness and efficiency of the Health and Human Service Commission's eligibility system. Include a review of staffing levels and staffing distribution; implementation of Rider 61; and the increased demand on the system. Make recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the system, focusing on policy changes that will not create a large financial burden for the state.
4. Study and make recommendations on the state's role for facilitating the exchange of health care information in the future, including using the Medicaid exchange as a framework for the statewide exchange of health information between health care providers to improve quality of care; what information the state should provide; how to use this information to improve care management, prevent medical errors, and reduce unnecessary services; and policies and statutory changes needed to ensure that privacy is protected. Study the feasibility of developing multiple regional health information technology exchanges in Texas.
5. Study the state's current and long-range need for physicians, nurses, dentists and other allied health and long-term care professionals. Provide recommendations for ensuring sufficient numbers of health care professionals, focusing on medically underserved and rural areas of the state as well as the Border region. Consider health care delivered by Advanced Practice Nurses in terms of access, cost and patient safety and include an assessment of independent prescriptive authority with those states in which prescriptive authority is delegated by a physician. Make recommendations to enhance the efficient use of Advanced Practice Nurses in Texas.
6. Explore strategies to support the needs of aging Texans, including best practices in nursing home diversion, expediting access to community services, and programs to assist seniors and their families in navigating the long-term care system with the goal of helping seniors remain in the community. Study the guardianship program implemented by the Department of Aging and Disabilities and the Department of Adult Protective Services, including the efficiency and effectiveness of the program, the relationship between the two agencies, the appropriate rights for parents, and whether clients and their assets are adequately protected to ensure the state is appropriately identifying seniors in need of protection.
7. Examine how the state could enact policies to improve the overall health of Texans, focusing on programs that compliment individually-based prevention with community­based prevention to reduce obesity rates by increasing physical activity, improving nutrition, and improving self-management of chronic diseases such as diabetes. Examine obesity-related health disparities between different ethnic groups and ways to narrow these gaps. Consider the fiscal and health impact of second-hand smoke on businesses and service sector employees. Study state-level initiatives to incorporate these individual and community-based prevention strategies, including initiatives pursued in other states.
8. Study the state's ability to appropriately respond to the H1N1 influenza pandemic by examining issues related to vaccine distribution and capacity. Consider the benefit of providing the state's independent school districts and various health authorities with standardized protocols for issues including, but not limited to, vaccine administration, absenteeism and the cancellation of school and other school-related events. Assess the state's ability to track and record H1N1 vaccinations through the ImmTrac registry, and review statutes governing ImmTrac to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of immunization information systems.
9. Study current state health care quality improvement initiatives in Texas, including statewide health care-associated infection and adverse event reporting, reimbursement reductions in the Texas Medicaid program for preventable adverse events, potentially preventable readmissions identification, health information technology implementation, pay-far-performance programs, and other initiatives aimed at improving the efficiency, safety, and quality of health care in Texas. Identify statutory changes that may build upon efforts to improve quality of care and contain health care costs in Texas. Study policies that encourage and facilitate the use of best practices by health care providers including the best way to report and distribute information on quality of care and the use of best practices to the public and to promote health care provider and payment incentives that will encourage the use of best practices. The study/recommendations could also include assessing the best way to bring provider groups together to increase quality of care, the use of best practices, and reduce unnecessary services.
10. Study current practices of the Texas Medical Board relating to disclosure of complaints.
11. Review the types of human stem cell and human cloning research being conducted, funded, or supported by state agencies, including institutions of higher education. Make recommendations for appropriate data collection and funding protocols.
12. Review the Medicaid HCBS waivers (CBA, STAR Plus, CLASS, MDCP, DBMT, TxHmL) and develop recommendations to assure that people with significant disabilities, regardless of disability label or age, receive needed services to remain in or transition to the community. Review should look at the delivery system, eligibility, service packages, rate structures, workforce issues and funding caps. Examine options for the provision of services for children aging out of the Medicaid system. Make recommendations for streamlining/combining these waivers, ensuring that these waivers are cost effective or create cost savings, and developing policies that contain costs in an effort to increase access to these services. The review should examine other states' community care waivers and provide recommendations relating to efforts that have been successful in other states.
13. Study the type, duration, frequency and effectiveness of mental health services available to and accessed by abused and neglected Texas children. Recommend strategies to address the impact of the trauma, and enhance therapeutic services available to this population in an effort to eliminate the cycle of abuse and neglect.
14. Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on Health & Human Services, 81st Legislature, Regular and Called Sessions, and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation.
  • Monitor Department of Family and Protective Services' implementation of the U.S. Fostering Connections Act, including the new Kinship Care program. Include recommendations on how to optimize the use of monetary assistance to qualified relative caregivers.
  • Monitor the Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS) implementation of SB 643, relating to Texas' state-supported living centers (SSLCs), implementation of Special Provisions relating to All Health and Human Services Agencies, Section 48. Contingency Appropriation for the Reshaping of the System for Providing Services to Individuals with Developmental Disabilities, and implementation of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) Settlement Agreement terms.
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: House Committee on Public Health, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2010 : a report to the House of Representatives, 82nd Texas Legislature
Subjects: Diet and nutrition | Emergency management | Employees Retirement System of Texas | Food safety | H1N1 virus | Health care | Health care costs | Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome | Influenza | Medicaid | Obesity | Parents | Teacher Retirement System of Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.81 H349h
Session: 81st R.S. (2009)
Online version: View report [84 pages  File size: 854 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor implementation of legislation intended to curb rising obesity rates in Texas. Study and make recommendations regarding better coordination of prevention efforts and evidence-based strategies to reduce the impact of obesity on health care costs. Include recommendations related to the use of federal stimulus funds targeted toward obesity prevention.
2. Study the state's ability to respond to the H1N1 virus. Examine issues related to vaccine and antiviral distribution and capacity, disease surveillance, communication with providers and the public, intergovernmental cooperation, and medical surge capability.
3. Determine how the state can best coordinate efforts to streamline health care delivery with health information technology (HIT). Identify areas in state law that affect the adoption and use of HIT. Recommend statutory changes as necessary.
4. Identify factors influencing health care cost trends in Texas, including practices or policies that may contribute to regional variations. Investigate medical imaging utilization and its impact on the cost and quality of health care. Recommend policy changes to promote best practices, reduce costs, and improve quality within the state Medicaid program, Employees Retirement System, and Teacher Retirement System. Joint Interim Charge with House Committee on Appropriations
5. Examine the need for and barriers to implementing routine HIV screenings as recommended in 2006 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Assess the impact of implementation on HIV transmission, health outcomes, clinical progression, and mortality.
6. Pursuant to HB 1672, 81st R.S., Section 4, study the policies and procedures related to the disclosure required by Chapter 33, Health and Safety Code, to the parent, managing conservator, or guardian of a newborn child.
7. Identify any gaps in Texas laws that may prevent coordinated efforts, both statewide and on the border, to ensure a safe food supply. Joint Interim Charge with House Committee on Border and Intergovernmental Affairs
8. Monitor the agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction.
Committee: Senate Finance
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report
Subjects: Aging and Disability Services, Texas Department of | Criminal Justice, Texas Department of | Employees Retirement System of Texas | Employers | Financial investments | Frew lawsuits | Health and Human Services Commission, Texas | Health insurance | Health insurance premium subsidies | Higher Education Coordinating Board, Texas | Highway finance | Investment of public funds | Iran | Medicaid | Medical reimbursements | Parks and Wildlife, Texas Department of | Permanent School Fund | Permanent University Fund | State agency budgets | State government debt | State Health Services, Texas Department of | State supported living centers | Sudan | Tax incentives | Teacher Retirement System of Texas | Texas Southern University | Transportation, Texas Department of | Youth Commission, Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.80 F49
Session: 80th R.S. (2007)
Online version: View report [46 pages  File size: 698 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Provide effective budget oversight of state agencies to ensure that monies appropriated are spent wisely. Particular areas of focus will include the Texas Department of Transportation, Department of State Health Services coordination of Mental Health Services, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department revitalization of State Parks, Health and Human Services Commission management of Frew settlement agreement and waiting list slots, Department of Aging and Disability Services improvement of State Schools, Texas Department of Criminal Justice roll out of treatment programs and review of the salary career ladder for employees for retention purposes, Texas Youth Commission achievement of reform, Texas Southern University rehabilitation, Higher Education Coordinating Board implementation of incentive programs and the creation of the Texas Cancer Research and Prevention Institute.
2. Evaluate the effectiveness of existing state tax incentives that encourage employers to provide health coverage to their employees, including tax incentives under the revised state business tax, and make recommendations for additional deductions or credits that increase the number of employees covered by health care insurance.
3. Study the feasibility and the advisability of establishing an investment policy that is consistent across all state trust funds, including the trust funds of the Employees Retirement System, the Teachers Retirement System, the Permanent University Fund, and the Permanent School Fund. Identify best investment policies for state trust funds. Examine recent portfolio diversification strategies and the effect they have on long-term fund performance. The recommendations should consider what is an acceptable rate of return, an acceptable degree of risk, the appropriateness of certain investments. (Joint charge with Senate State Affairs Committee)
4. Review Medicaid provider reimbursement rate methodologies, including the impact of factors such as infrastructure concerns, federal minimum wage changes, and cost reports. Study the impact on access to care, quality of care, and value, and make recommendations for legislative changes, taking into account rate increases contained in the current budget. (Joint charge with Senate Health and Human Services Committee)
5. Study and review state and local options for expanding transportation funding and explore options to reduce diversions of Fund 6 revenue. (Joint charge with Senate Committee on Transportation and Homeland Security)
6. Study and make recommendations relating to whether the Texas Department of Transportation is in compliance with Transportation Code §201.109, Revenue Enhancement, and whether the Texas Department of Transportation is using the funding sources provided by the Legislature, including, but not limited to, General Obligation, Fund 6 and Mobility Fund bonds, to build new roads. (Joint charge with Senate Committee on Transportation and Homeland Security)
7. Monitor and provide a brief update on the implementation of legislation addressed by the Finance Committee, 80th R.S., and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve or enhance and complete implementation.
  • SB 247, 80th R.S., relating to Sudan divestment, and make recommendations about whether to include Iran in the divestment strategy;
  • SB1332, 80th R.S., to help improve the state's debt management and oversight, including a more comprehensive review of state debt and improved communication between entities and oversight of state bond issuance;
  • SB 10, 80th R.S., and the Frew settlement to ensure that the initiatives carried out by the Health and Human Services Commission affect meaningful improvement in access to quality care in the Texas Medicaid program; and
  • HB 3732, 80th R.S., relating to ultra-clean coal technologies, and determine the amount of property tax removed from the tax rolls, as well as the corresponding impact on school finance. Identify any changes needed to strengthen the program and ensure its success.
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report to the 81st Legislature
Subjects: Adoption | Aging and Disability Services, Texas Department of | Asthma | Caseworkers | Child abuse prevention | Child Protective Services | Disease management | Disease preparedness | Disease prevention | Family and Protective Services, Texas Department of | Family Based Safety Services | Family preservation | Foster care | Health care providers | Health Enterprise Zones | Health insurance premium subsidies | Home health care services | Immunizations | Influenza | Medicaid | Medical errors | Medical reimbursements | Medically uninsured | Mental health services | Mentally disabled persons | Nursing homes | Obesity | Persons with disabilities | Preparation for Adult Living | Rural health care | Services for persons with disabilities | Smoking bans | State supported living centers | Stem cell research | Umbilical cord blood |
Library Call Number: L1836.80 H349
Session: 80th R.S. (2007)
Online version: View report [379 pages  File size: 16,580 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor the Department of Aging and Disability Services' improvement plan for the system of care for individuals with developmental disabilities, focusing on efforts to improve state schools and provide more community care options. Evaluate the process for preventing, reporting, and investigating abuse and neglect in state schools, ICF/MRs and the Home and Community-Based Services (HCS) program. Determine the short-term and long-term financial impact of increasing the number of individuals served in home or community locations and the financial impact this shift has on state schools. Monitor the department's efforts to convert institutions to community care providers through the money-follows-the-person program designed to improve access to community care services. Specifically make recommendations on:
  • how to further improve the system of care for individuals with developmental disabilities;
  • preventing, reporting, and investigating abuse and neglect;
  • developing a transition plan for reducing waiting list for community care service;
  • incentives for converting institutions into community care providers; and
  • a long term plan to address issues that result from the current federal Department of Justice investigation.
2. Study and make recommendations related to creating an outcome-based reimbursement model in Texas' Medicaid program as a way to improve quality of care, reduce medical errors, and create cost savings. Develop a pilot health care program that pays for best practices, rather than only paying for actual procedures performed. Examine the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid's (CMS) efforts to create an outcome-based system in the Medicare payment system that sanctions serious, preventable medical errors. Examine Pennsylvania's efforts to implement a similar outcome-based reimbursement model to make providers more vigilant about patient care, encourage best practices, and reduce costs in their Medicaid program. If necessary, examine other health care coverage models that have successfully incorporated an outcome-based reimbursement system. Consider pay-for-performance, options that reward good outcomes and the use of best practices, and changes to the reimbursement system that will reduce serious preventable medical errors and hospital acquired infections.
3. Study the effectiveness of the Resiliency and Disease Management (RDM) program in the mental health service delivery system, implementation of changes to the crisis care program, and recommendations for appropriate use of the mental health transformation grant. Identify strategies to increase access to services and meet future demand for services. Examine resource allocation and opportunities to maximize funding. Policy recommendations should maximize the number of inpatient psychiatric acute care beds, enhance access to outpatient services, promote the use of recovery-based services, and enhance access to community-based services.
4. Monitor the implementation of the Department of Family and Protective Services’ improvement plan to reduce caseloads for Child Protective Service caseworkers, and to provide family-based safety services and ongoing substitute care services. Evaluate the efficiency of Child Protective Services "functional units," and determine if other organizational models would allow for a reduction in caseworkers' caseloads, without increasing other administrative costs. Develop recommendations aimed at lowering individual caseloads, making casework more efficient, and improving the retention of caseworkers. Assess the viability of caseworker reimbursement as a manner to lower caseworker turnover.
5. Monitor the implementation of the Department of Family and Protective Services' plan to stabilize the foster care system and increase permanency options for children. Study placement capacity to determine how Child Protective Services can better develop the necessary adoptions or foster homes to meet the needs of children and families by increasing foster care capacity, recruiting and retaining more foster and adoptive parents, increasing the use of relative care, and developing best practices for reducing foster care placement breakdowns. This includes studying innovative ways to promote adoption and kinship care in Texas and best practices for foster/adoptive parents to improve their ability to care for abused and neglected children. Explore potential improvements and enhancements in the Preparation for Adult Living (PAL) program to increase successful transitioning from foster care to adult living. Study current death review processes for children who die while in state care.
6. Examine Texas' current strategies for preventing child abuse. Specifically study the effectiveness of current programs and how these programs compare to other state efforts. Identify national research-based solutions, including best practices and programs addressing sexual abuse. Explore promising existing and emerging approaches to child abuse and neglect prevention, especially those with a strong evidence base. Identify additional funding sources for increased child abuse prevention activities by the state.
7. Study the changes in statute contained in SB 10, 80th R.S., as well as the state's current prevention and wellness efforts and chronic care management efforts, and identify opportunities for improvement in state policies and programs. Examine options for expanding and optimizing the state's current investment in wellness programs and management tools for individuals with chronic care conditions, including options that address childhood asthma. Review partnerships with the private sector that specifically address the following:
  • tobacco cessation, including the evaluation of a statewide smoking ban in public places;
  • reducing obesity;
  • availability and effectiveness of childhood and adult vaccines, including public education programs to promote the use of vaccines; and
  • more effective management of chronic care conditions.
8. Study the effectiveness and efficiency of nursing homes and home-based solutions/home care in Texas, and make recommendations to improve nursing homes and their funding. Identify and study successful nursing home funding models established by other states. Consider ways to fund infrastructure for nursing and therapists and home care. Examine the possibility of an incentive-based “pay for performance” rate plan for nursing facilities and consider factors that it could be based on, taking into account similar plans implemented in other states. Make recommendations on how best to use Medicaid to fund skilled nursing and home health care in Texas. Explore options for improving graduation rates for nurses in Texas.
9. Study and address ethical issues surrounding the impact of a pandemic influenza in this state, particularly focusing on the following:
  • the availability of human and material resources;
  • the benefits and burdens of mass vaccination plans;
  • the involvement of private sector professional organizations and businesses in the state's pandemic influenza preparedness and response plans; and
  • development and implementation of communication plans that will inform and prepare the public on risk reduction behaviors and local/state preparedness and response.
10. Study the potential for development of Health Enterprise Zones, which could offer tax incentives to medical providers who locate within the boundaries of designated medically underserved areas. Analyze similar legislation enacted in other states, specifically New Jersey, and estimate costs and benefits. Consider expanding incentives to medically related industries such as medical research facilities, laboratories and equipment manufacturers in order to spur economic development.
11. Monitor the collection and availability of cord blood stem cells for treatments and research in Texas. Review the current state of basic and clinical research using these and other types of adult stem cells. Assess the potential for clinical and economic benefits from current and increased adult stem cell research.
12. Review Medicaid provider reimbursement rate methodologies, including the impact of factors such as infrastructure concerns, federal minimum wage changes, and cost reports. Study the impact on access to care, quality of care, and value, and make recommendations for legislative changes, taking into account rate increases contained in the current budget. (Joint charge with Senate Finance Committee)
13. Study the state's current and long-range need for physicians, dentists, nurses, and other allied health and long-term care professionals. Make recommendations on how the state can help recruit high-need professions, especially for primary care providers and long-term care professionals in the underserved regions of Texas. (Joint charge with the Senate Committee on International Relations and Trade)
14. Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Health and Human Services Committee, 80th R.S., and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation. Specifically, report on the implementation of SB 10, 80th R.S., to ensure meaningful improvement in access to quality care in the Texas Medicaid program, focusing on how to cover more uninsured in Texas with market-based plans or premium assistance for employer health plans, and monitor the creation of the Texas Cancer Research and Prevention Institute.
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report - medical reimbursement and uncompensated care
Subjects: Medicaid | Medical reimbursements |
Library Call Number: L1836.80 H349m
Session: 80th R.S. (2007)
Online version: View report [22 pages  File size: 380 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Review Medicaid provider reimbursement rate methodologies, including the impact of factors such as infrastructure concerns, federal minimum wage changes, and cost reports. Study the impact on access to care, quality of care, and value, and make recommendations for legislative changes, taking into account rate increases contained in the current budget. (Joint charge with Senate Finance Committee)
Committee: Senate Finance
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim charge recommendations to the 80th Legislature
Subjects: Banks and banking | Driver Responsibility Program | Emergency medical services | Federal funds | Health care costs | Indigent health care | Medicaid | Medicaid fraud | Money transfers | Transportation planning | Transportation, Texas Department of | Trauma Facilty/EMS account |
Library Call Number: L1836.79 F49
Session: 79th R.S. (2005)
Online version: View report [62 pages  File size: 16,186 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review health care funding, focusing on the Medicaid program, Medicare Part D, hospital reimbursements and trauma and indigent care.
2. Study the method through which fees are collected under the Driver's Responsibility Program in order in maximize the amount of money for trauma funding and transportation. Look specifically at collection rates and develop means to enhance them.
3. Determine the number of commercial and consumer transactions, including wire transfers, that occur in Texas. Determine the amount of monies that are sent internationally from Texas. Study the feasibility of creating a pilot program in Harris County that captures a percentage of revenues from such transactions, and request an Opinion from the Attorney General's Office to pursue these revenues as a potential source for health care funding.
4. Review the process by which the Texas Department of Transportation Commission allocates funds to the districts through the Allocation Program. Include a description of all scoring mechanisms used in making allocations of resources and make recommendations for maximizing the use of these funds to meet Legislative objectives. Joint Charges with Senate Transportation & Homeland Security Committee.
5. Review the process by which the Texas Department of Transportation Commission determines which federal funding sources should be implemented to comply with funding reductions mandated by Congress. Assess the Commission's options for determining how projects that were to be funded out of these reduced revenue sources will be funded this biennium. Joint Charges with Senate Transportation & Homeland Security Committee.
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report to the 80th Legislature
Subjects: 211 telephone system | Adult Protective Services | Caseworkers | Child nutrition programs | Child Protective Services | Children's Health Insurance Program enrollment and eligibility | Children's mental health | Diet and nutrition | Family and Protective Services, Texas Department of | Federally qualified health centers | Guardianship | Health care | Immunizations | Influenza | Medicaid | Medical assistants | Mental health services | Mentally ill inmates | Mentally ill persons | Nurses | Nursing shortages | Obesity | Pharmacists | Physical fitness | Physicians | Services for persons with disabilities | Social service agencies | Stem cell research | Telemedicine | Texas Emerging Technology Fund |
Library Call Number: L1836.79 H349
Session: 79th R.S. (2005)
Online version: View report [201 pages  File size: 3,167 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study and make recommendations for improving delivery of Texas' mental health services; consider local and regional delivery systems including access to care, cost effectiveness, choice and competition, and quality of care.
2. Monitor state and federal Medicaid reform proposals, including their impact on the Medicaid program in Texas, as well as cost-containment measures in other states, and make recommendations for legislative action, as appropriate.
3. Study and make recommendations relating to filling shortages in the health care workforce and improving medical educational services. Evaluate the state's use of the National Health Service Corps and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) to address the needs of the Medicaid/Medicare and underinsured populations
4. Examine the strategies used by other states that have had success with FQHCs and make recommendations for increasing the number of FQHCs in Texas.
5. Study and make recommendations relating to policy issues surrounding the use of emerging skin cell research, and other technologies.
6. Study and make recommendations for improving vaccination rates and ensuring an adequate vaccination supply in the state. Include an analysis of vaccine manufacturing and purchasing policies.
7. Evaluate and make recommendations relating to the creation of a comprehensive and statewide nutrition and physical activity plan to address obesity and chronic diseases. Examine options for funding components of such a plan.
8. Monitor the implementation of SB 6, 79th R.S., relating to Child and Adult Protective Services. Study and make recommendations for development and enhancements to protocols for joint investigations by child protective service workers and law enforcement and for interviews with children for disclosure of abuse.
9. Study the current use of the 2-1-1 network to provide access to information on federal, state, and local resources. Examine and make recommendations on strategies that improve the coordination of service information and expand the availability of information on services currently provided by community and faith-based organizations.
10. Monitor the implementation of HB 2292, 78th R.S., relating to health and human services. Focus on implementation of service coordination and consolidation efforts to assess the impact on service quality, while reducing costs.
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report - Joint with Committee on State Affairs
Library Catalog Title: Joint interim report to the 80th Legislature
Subjects: Competency to stand trial | Criminally insane | End of life issues | Long-term care | Long-term care insurance | Medicaid | Medical savings accounts | Mental health services | Mentally ill inmates | Prescription drug costs | Prescription drugs | Reverse mortgages | State hospitals |
Library Call Number: L1836.79 H349sa
Session: 79th R.S. (2005)
Online version: View report [82 pages  File size: 3,061 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Examine and make recommendations, if necessary, regarding the state's role in regulating pharmacy benefit managers in the interest of consumer protection. Examine alternative methods of dispensing maintenance drugs, including mail service and retail pharmacies, and provide an analysis of the state's role in protecting consumers. Joint Charge with State Affairs Committee.
2. Study how to reduce dependence on Medicaid for the provision of long term care by increasing use of long-term care insurance and health savings accounts. Include a study of options for increasing the use of advance planning tools, such as health care power of attorney and living wills, to ensure more effective decision-making regarding critical end-of-life and other health care decisions. Finally, study the feasibility of implementing innovative models of nursing facility services that encourage autonomy, choice and dignity of residents. Joint Charge with State Affairs Committee.
3. Study the current laws/policies relating to forensic patients in our State Hospitals and Community Mental Health Organizations. Include analysis of and recommendations relating to pre- and post-trial forensic patients, competency laws and procedures, current treatment policies and guidelines, cost and placement considerations for creating specialty units for forensic patients, judicial discretion and medical best practices. Joint Charge with State Affairs Committee.
Committee: Senate State Affairs
Title: Interim Report - Joint with Committee on Health and Human Services
Library Catalog Title: Joint interim report to the 80th Legislature
Subjects: Competency to stand trial | Criminally insane | End of life issues | Long-term care | Long-term care insurance | Medicaid | Mental health services | Mentally ill inmates | Nursing homes | Prescription drug costs | State hospitals |
Library Call Number: L1836.79 H349sa
Session: 79th R.S. (2005)
Online version: View report [82 pages  File size: 3,061 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Examine and make recommendations, if necessary, regarding the state's role in regulating pharmacy benefit managers in the interest of consumer protection. Examine alternative methods of dispensing maintenance drugs, including mail service and retail pharmacies, and provide an analysis of the state's role in protecting consumers. Joint Charge with Health and Human Services Committee
2. Study how to reduce dependence on Medicaid for the provision of long term care by increasing use of long-term care insurance and health savings accounts. Include a study of options for increasing the use of advance planning tools, such as health care power of attorney and living wills, to ensure more effective decision-making regarding critical end-of-life and other health care decisions. Finally, study the feasibility of implementing innovative models of nursing facility services that encourage autonomy, choice and dignity of residents. Joint Charge with Health and Human Services Committee.
3. Study the current laws/policies relating to forensic patients in our State Hospitals and Community Mental Health Organizations. Include analysis of and recommendations relating to pre- and post-trial forensic patients, competency laws and procedures, current treatment policies and guidelines, cost and placement considerations for creating specialty units for forensic patients, judicial discretion and medical best practices. Joint Charge with Health and Human Services Committee.
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report to the 79th Legislature
Subjects: Adult Protective Services | Call centers | Child Protective Services | Children's Health Insurance Program | Databases | Family and Protective Services, Texas Department of | Health care | Hospitals | Immunizations | Indigent health care | Long-term care | Medicaid | Medicaid fraud | Medical Board, Texas | Medicare | Prompt payment of insurance claims | Social service agencies | State government reorganization | Welfare |
Library Call Number: L1936.78 H349
Session: 78th R.S. (2003)
Online version: View report [247 pages  File size: 1,485 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study and make recommendations on structural reform, efficiency improvements, and cost savings in the state Medicaid and CHIP programs, with a goal of changing the method and delivery of service to reduce costs while providing the intended services. The Committee should examine and make recommendations to: lower institutional costs; subsidize private insurance in lieu of Medicaid and CHIP where possible; use consumer-directed care models; reimburse health care providers based upon outcomes where feasible; match currently unmatched local funds with federal funds; alter Texas' current method of finance and distribution of DSH; develop possible HIFA waiver options that incorporate premium subsidization; develop accountability and incentive measures for outcomes within Medicaid managed care and CHIP; seek flexibility from federal government to allow options and waivers and enhance federal funds; examine local models for delivery of Medicaid while maintaining best practices; and expand access to mental health services through expansion of behavioral health organization model. The Committee will coordinate these studies with the Health and Human Services Transition Legislative Oversight Committee review of mental health and mental retardation services.
2. Monitor implementation and make recommendations to improve HB 2292, 78th R.S.. Include reviews of implementation of the preferred drug list and prior authorization and the new call center for determination of program and service eligibility. The Committee will coordinate activities with the Health and Human Services Transition Legislative Oversight Committee.
3. Study and make recommendations on improving Texas's county and local indigent health care system. Consider whether the system should be regionalized to reflect usage and gain efficiencies, so that one or more counties are not paying for regional health care.
4. Monitor the implementation and make recommendations to enhance the effectiveness of legislation relating to the Board of Medical Examiners, legislation relating to childhood immunizations, legislation relating to the pilot front end Medicaid fraud reduction systems, federal developments related to TANF reauthorization and related programs, expansion and new construction of Federally Qualified Health Centers, federal developments related to prescription drugs in Medicare and the effect on Medicaid. Also, monitor and report on the use of new federal Medicare funds allocated for Texas
5. Study and make recommendations on increasing electronic transactions in health care. Review the use and make recommendations on improving technology in health care administration, including expediting pre-authorizations and increasing the efficiency of claims processing so that medical providers are paid once procedures are pre-authorized and performed, and administrative costs lowered, benefitting both the consumer and the managed health care organizations.
6. Study health facility regulation in Texas and make recommendations that facilitate innovation and patient safety. Concentrate studies on hospitals, including niche hospitals, Federally Qualified Health Centers and long term care facilities, and make recommendations for improving patient choice, facility competition, indigent health care, and for maintaining a competitive, patient-oriented health care industry.
7. Study and make recommendations on improving the Protective and Regulatory Services service levels payment system and tiered adoption subsidy program. Study and make recommendations on improving the recruitment and retention of foster care families.
Committee: House State Health Care Expenditures, Select
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: House Select Committee on State Health Care Expenditures, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2004 : a report to the House of Representatives, 79th Texas Legislature
Subjects: Children's Health Insurance Program | Driver Responsibility Program | Emergency medical services | Employees Retirement System of Texas | Health care | Medicaid | Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Program, Texas | State employee benefits | Teacher health insurance | Teacher Retirement System of Texas | Traffic violations |
Library Call Number: L1836.78 H35
Session: 78th R.S. (2003)
Online version: View report [73 pages  File size: 919 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor the implementation of the Driver Responsibility Act in respect to the collection of associated surcharges for trauma care. Specifically evaluate the funding and distribution of funds to trauma care facilities.
2. Study the effects of "crowd out" in the Children's Health Insurance Program and Medicaid Program to determine accurate data and to ascertain if additional policy changes are needed to prevent "crowd out" of private insurance and escalating public insurance costs.
3. Evaluate the funding source of the Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) Program and the criteria that a hospital must meet to participate in the DSH program in comparison to the balance and fairness of other state and federal funding streams.
4. Study the current consumer-directed care models that are in use by the state and look at other states' consumer-directed care models that may benefit Texas in areas such as long-term health care and chronic health care. Place emphasis on the Program of All-Inclusive Care For the Elderly model to ascertain its true potential for both cost-effectiveness and improved health outcomes. Identify barriers to the model's expansion in Texas.
5. Continue to identify and seek new models for the provision of health care benefits within the Employee Retirement System and the Teacher Retirement System.
Committee: Joint Health Services, Interim
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report / Joint Legislative Interim Committee on Health Services.
Subjects: Children's Health Insurance Program | Health and Human Services Commission, Texas | Medicaid | Medicaid application process | Medicaid eligibility | Medical reimbursements | Prescription drug costs | Prescription drugs |
Library Call Number: L1836.77 h35
Session: 77th R.S. (2001)
Online version: View report [140 pages  File size: 6,984 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) cost issues, including: a)Medicaid cost containment activities, including implementation of Article II Special Provisions contained in Sec. 33 of SB 1, 77th R.S.; b)Implementation of SB 43, 77th R.S., regarding Medicaid simplification; c)Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) reorganization of Medicaid and CHIP administration; d)CHIP and Medicaid acute health reimbursement rates, including implementation of legislation passed by the 77th Legislature, SB 1053, 77th R.S., SB 1299, 77th R.S., and SB 1, 77th R.S., HHSC, Sec. 54 and Art. II Special Provisions, Secs. 29 and 30; e)Medicaid and CHIP caseload and cost projections; f)federal actions affecting Medicaid and CHIP costs; and g)any other items deemed pertinent by the Joint Committee.
2. Study the cost effectiveness of twelve month continuous eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP and make recommendations to the 78th Legislature.
3. Monitor the implementation legislation passed by the 77th Legislature regarding interagency bulk purchasing of pharmaceuticals, HB 915, 77th R.S., and SB 1, 77th R.S., Art. IX, Sec. 6.47.
Committee: Senate Border Affairs, Special
Title: Interim Report - Health
Library Catalog Title: Health interim report : Texas border health.
Subjects: Air pollution | Air quality | Birth defects | Border health | Border Health Institute | Children's Health Insurance Program | Dengue Fever | Dental hygienists | Dentists | Diabetes | Drinking water | Immunizations | Indigent health care | Medicaid | Medicaid application process | Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Program, Texas | Medical reimbursements | Medical research | Mental health services | Mosquitoes | Sewer service | Surface water pollution | Texas Center for Infectious Disease | Tire disposal | Tuberculosis | Wastewater management | Water quality management | Water supplies |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 b644h
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [108 pages  File size: 503 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Assess the Border Region's water and wastewater system infrastructure needs and the impact of the lack of adequate water and wastewater systems on health conditions along the Border. The Committee shall develop both short-term and long-term recommendations to address these infrastructure needs.
2. Assess the health conditions in the Border Region, including childhood diseases and chronic health problems endemic to the Border such as diabetes and tuberculosis. Included in this assessment shall be an evaluation of the utilization of immunization and prevention programs and of collaborative efforts on common health issues between Texas and the Mexican Border States. The Committee shall develop health care strategies to improve Border health conditions and recommendations for their implementation.
Committee: Senate Finance
Title: Interim Report - Graduate medical education
Library Catalog Title: Report to the Senate Finance Committee, 76th Texas Legislature / Senate Finance Committee Interim Subcommittee on Graduate Medical Education.
Subjects: Hospitals | Indigent health care | Medicaid | Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Program, Texas | Medical education | Medical reimbursements |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 f49me
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [72 pages  File size: 3,045 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Evaluate the financial viability and educational effectiveness of graduate medical education in light of changes in Medicaid, managed care, and other cost factors, including the impact of uncompensated care. This evaluation shall include a review of the role of the state's teaching hospitals in the provision of indigent health care, and the role of graduate medical education in addressing health care needs of under-served regions of the state.
2. Review the Texas Disproportionate Share Hospital Program, with an emphasis on the formula and criteria used to distribute funding to hospitals. The committee's report should include a comprehensive assessment of all sources of funding (federal, state, and local) available to hospitals which serve Medicaid clients and the indigent poor, as well as the costs incurred by hospitals which serve Medicaid clients and the indigent poor, as well as the costs incurred by hospitals serving these groups. The committee will report any findings or recommendations by May 1. Subcommittee: Moncrief - Chairman, Truan, West, Carona, Lindsay SFC Staff: Nancy Frank, Laura Smith LBB: Kim Carson, Trey Berndt - Fed. Funds, Regina Martin - HHS
Committee: Senate Finance
Title: Interim Report - Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Program
Library Catalog Title: Final report on Medicaid disproportionate share hospital funding / [submitted] to the Senate Finance Committee [by] Senate Finance Interim Subcommittee on Graduate Medical Education.
Subjects: Hospitals | Indigent health care | Medicaid | Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Program, Texas | Medical reimbursements |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 f49meh
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [129 pages  File size: 7,339 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Review the Texas Disproportionate Share Hospital Program, with an emphasis on the formula and criteria used to distribute funding to hospitals. The committee's report should include a comprehensive assessment of all sources of funding (federal, state, and local) available to hospitals which serve Medicaid clients and the indigent poor, as well as the costs incurred by hospitals which serve Medicaid clients and the indigent poor, as well as the costs incurred by hospitals serving these groups. The committee will report any findings or recommendations by May 1. Subcommittee: Moncrief - Chairman, Truan, West, Carona, Lindsay SFC Staff: Nancy Frank, Laura Smith LBB: Kim Carson, Trey Berndt - Fed. Funds, Regina Martin - HHS
Committee: House General Investigating
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: House Committee on General Investigating, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2000 : a report to the House of Representatives, 77th Texas Legislature.
Subjects: Dentists | Education, Texas State Board of | General Services Commission, Texas | Homeland security | Investment managers | Medicaid | Medicaid fraud | Permanent School Fund | Persons with disabilities | Public Safety, Texas Department of | Risk Management, State Office of | State buildings | State employees | State government contracts | State Preservation Board | Stock investments | Texas Council on Purchasing from People with Disabilities | Texas Health Steps Program | Texas State Capitol |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 g286
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [85 pages  File size: 495 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Investigate allegations of excessive use of crowns and other aggressive dental procedures by certain providers in the Medicaid program.
2. Investigate recent actions of the State Board of Education relating to its management of the Permanent School Fund.
3. Review the security resources available to protect state employees and state buildings.
4. Review the program and processes by which disabled workers are afforded priority in certain state procurements, including the roles of the General Services Commission, the Council for Purchasing from People with Disabilities, and the Texas Industries for the Blind and Handicapped.
Committee: Senate Health Services
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Report to the 77th Legislature / Texas Senate Health Committee.
Subjects: Biological weapons | Biotechnology industry | Children's Health Insurance Program | Cloning | Dentists | Ethics | Genetic research and testing | Health care providers | Immunizations | Managed care | Medicaid | Medical privacy | Medical records | Nurses | Nursing shortages | Pharmaceutical industry | Pharmacists | Physicians | Privacy | State employee turnover | Telemedicine |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 h35
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [356 pages  File size: 6,500 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Evaluate the changes in the Medicaid system since the beginning of Medicaid reform. The Committee shall assess reform efforts in light of the original goals for implementation of Medicaid managed care, as well as the impact of Medicaid managed care on patient outcomes, cost implications to the state, and the impact on traditional providers of indigent care. The Committee shall also specifically evaluate the ability of Medicaid managed care organizations and the state to manage chronic illnesses and develop specific strategies for disease management for certain populations.
2. Inventory and analyze the amount and type of research related to pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and genetics currently occurring in Texas to maximize the benefits to Texans in these fields. The Committee shall also examine the ethical implications associated with pharmaceuticals, genetic and biotechnology research.
3. Review the type, amount, availability, and use of patient-specific medical information, including prescription data, and current statutory and regulatory provisions governing its availability. The report shall explore if statutory and regulatory provisions are consistent and adequately enforced.
4. Study impacts of the degree of choice granted physicians to administer immunizations to children under the Vaccinations For Children (VFC) Program. The Committee shall focus on the health and fiscal implications to the public and private sectors of granting choices to physicians where more than one manufacturer produces the same vaccine at an equivalent price.
5. Assess the preparedness of the Texas health care workforce to meet the health care needs of Texans beyond the year 2000, including methods to retain Texas-trained medical personnel. The Committee shall evaluate the availability of health care providers in rural and urban areas. The Committee shall also review the oversight of medical procedures performed by medical residents and disclosure provided to patients prior to treatment.
6. Monitor the implementation of SB 445, 76th R.S. relating to the Children's Health Insurance Program.
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: House Committee on Human Services, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2000 : a report to the House of Representatives, 77th Texas Legislature.
Subjects: Americans with Disabilities Act | Bankruptcy | Community care | Disability benefits | Food stamps | Human Services, Texas Department of | Liability insurance | Long-term care | Medicaid | Medicaid eligibility | Medical liability insurance | Medical reimbursements | Medicare | Nursing homes | Persons with disabilities | Services for persons with disabilities | Welfare | Welfare reform |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 h88
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [98 pages  File size: 765 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study issues created by the transition of the TANF program to federal law when the state's waiver expires in 2002. Include a review of the final TANF regulations and how other states use TANF funds outside the traditional cash assistance program. Consider policies to improve outcomes for people leaving welfare.
2. Study issues surrounding the financial difficulties experienced by some nursing home companies, including the reasons for bankruptcies and closures, state policies and resources for dealing with them, and impacts on residents.
3. Assess the state's responsibilities and policies regarding supports for individuals with disabilities in community-based settings.
4. Study the current public assistance eligibility, application and review processes, and other Department of Human Services' client communications to ensure that clients are getting the supports necessary to make a successful transition to self-sufficiency.
Committee: Senate Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Senate Committee on Human Services interim report.
Subjects: Abortion | Aging and Disability Services, Texas Department of | Americans with Disabilities Act | Children with disabilities | Community care | Health and Human Services Commission, Texas | Human Services, Texas Department of | Long-term care | Long-term care insurance | Medicaid | Nursing homes | Parental notification of abortion | Persons with disabilities | Protective and Regulatory Services, Texas Department of | Senior citizens | Services for persons with disabilities | Supreme Court, U.S. | Welfare | Welfare reform | Welfare-to-work |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 h89
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [303 pages  File size: 882 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Examine the continuum of care and support options available to Texans in need of long-term care. The Committee shall evaluate the effectiveness of state regulatory efforts to ensure quality services as well as analyze the long-term care business climate.
2. Evaluate services provided to hardest-to-serve adult welfare recipients and services provided to children receiving welfare. The Committee shall assess the state's ability to avoid long-term dependency on welfare for both of these populations and develop additional strategies to encourage self-sufficiency and movement from welfare to work.
3. Monitor federal developments related to long-term care and welfare issues. In the event that significant developments occur, the Committee shall evaluate their impact on Texas.
4. Monitor the implementation of the following bills enacted during the 76th R.S.: SB 30, 76th R.S., relating to parental notification before an abortion may be performed on certain minors; SB 374, 76th R.S., relating to the provision of certain long-term care services, to the continuation and functions of the Texas Department on Aging, and to the eventual consolidation of the Texas Department of Human Services and the Texas Department on Aging into a new agency on aging and disability services; and HB 2641, 76th R.S., relating to the continuation and functions of the Health and Human Services Commission. The Committee shall also monitor the effects of the additional resources provided to the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services.
Supporting documents
Committee: Senate Human Services
Title: Interim Committee Rules
Library Catalog Title: Minutes
Library Call Number: L1803.9 H89 76
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View document [5 pages  File size: 169 kb]
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: House Committee on Public Health, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2000 : a report to the House of Representatives, 77th Texas Legislature.
Subjects: Children's health insurance | Children's Health Insurance Program | e-commerce | Emergency medical services | Health care | Hospitals | Indigent health care | Internet | Managed care | Medicaid | Nonprofit hospitals | Pharmaceutical industry | Pharmacists | Prescription drug costs | Prescription drugs | Public health | State government contracts | Telemedicine | Trauma centers |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 h349h
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [275 pages  File size: 10,000 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review the role of the pharmaceutical industry in the delivery of health care in Texas. The review should identify pharmaceutical cost-drivers and opportunities to reduce costs, assess the role of pharmacy benefit managers and pharmacies, and address patient-specific issues, as well as other issues identified by the committee.
2. Review issues related to the increased use of new technologies in the delivery of health care. The review should identify opportunities and risks associated with the sale of medical devices and drugs over the Internet, the feasibility of expanding telemedicine to improve care in underserved areas, and regulatory and privacy issues presented by these new technologies.
3. Evaluate the role and potential of disease management in public health programs that serve chronically ill populations.
4. Study issues arising from hospital system sales, conversions, partnerships and mergers, including the impact on health care in medically underserved and rural communities and on the level of charity care provided.
5. Examine the requirements imposed on emergency medical services providers in rural areas. Determine whether individual requirements encourage or hinder the provision of services.
6. Conduct active oversight of the agencies under the committee's jurisdiction, including the Children's Health Insurance Program, the restructuring of health and humans service agencies under HB 2641, 76th R.S., and the Medicaid managed care program.
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: House Committee on Human Services, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 1998 : a report to the House of Representatives, 76th Texas Legislature.
Subjects: Long-term care | Managed care | Medicaid | Nursing homes | Quality of care |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 h88
Session: 75th R.S. (1997)
Online version: View report [22 pages  File size: 1,154 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Conduct active oversight of the agencies under the committee's jurisdiction.
2. Actively monitor implementation of the STAR-Plus Medicaid managed care project for long-term care in Harris County. This is a national pilot project and many constituencies will be interested in its deployment and results.
3. Study the opportunities and problems associated with use of an index to measure quality of long-term care in Medicaid-certified nursing homes.
Committee: Joint Long-Term Care, Legislative Oversight
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Long Term Care Legislative Oversight Committee interim report.
Subjects: Attorney General of Texas | Human Services, Texas Department of | Long-term care | Long-term care insurance | Medicaid | Medical reimbursements | Nursing homes | Quality of care |
Library Call Number: L1836.75 l854r
Session: 75th R.S. (1997)
Online version: View report [81 pages  File size: 3,789 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Identify significant problems in the nursing facility regulatory system and make recommendations for legislation action.
2. Analyze and monitor the effectiveness and efficiency of the nursing facility regulatory system of Texas and make recommendations for any necessary research or legislative action.
3. Review specific recommendations for legislation proposed by the Department of Human Services or the attorney General relating to nursing facility rules and regulations and other long-term care issues.
4. Analyze the continuum of care of long term services available to Texans and make recommendations for legislative action.
Committee: Senate Finance
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Interim committee report of the Senate Finance Committee to the 75th Legislature.
Subjects: Child care | Computer networks | Data management | Federal funds | Federal government | Higher education | Higher education affordability | Information Resources, Texas Department of | Medicaid | State budgets | Telecommunications infrastructure | Tuition | University budgets | University finance | Welfare | Welfare reform |
Library Call Number: L1836.74 f49f
Session: 74th R.S. (1995)
Online version: View report [272 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. To evaluate the impact on Texas government finance resulting from proposed changes in federal funding mechanisms and to make recommendations to implement changed funding mechanisms.
2. To monitor implementation of tuition and student use fee increases, HB 815, 74th R.S. and HB 1792, 74th R.S., by higher education institutions. The Committee shall issue a report identifying the impacts and uses of tuition and student use fee increases.
3. To evaluate use of emerging telecommunication infrastructure for efficiencies in collection and disbursement of state funds and to evaluate the impact of technology and its effect on the demand for state appropriations.
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim report - Medicaid and welfare reform
Library Catalog Title: Medicaid and welfare reform : interim report.
Subjects: Federal funds | Indigent health care | Job training programs | Managed care | Medicaid | Medical savings accounts | Social service agencies | Welfare | Welfare reform | Welfare-to-work | Workforce |
Library Call Number: L1836.74 h349m
Session: 74th R.S. (1995)
Online version: View report [350 pages  File size: 15,412 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor the development of federal waivers resulting from Medicaid and welfare reform legislation, SB 10, 74th R.S., and HB 1863, 74th R.S., to be submitted and negotiated with the federal Health Care Finance Administration.
2. Monitor the implementation of the Medicaid health care delivery system created by SB 10, 74th R.S., to ensure that the phase-in of the program is being carried out in a rapid but thorough manner.
3. Review and assess Medicaid reform legislation and welfare reform, SB 10, 74th R.S., and HB 1863, 74th R.S., and make recommendations for state legislation, if necessary, regarding modifications needed to ensure a smooth transition to statewide managed health care for indigent patients and enacting the reformed welfare system.
4. Establish a working group consisiting of Committee members, legislative staff, staff from the State Comptroller's Office, the Legislative Budget Office and other affected state agencies to monitor the activities in Congress regarding block grant funding and the impact these will have on Texas' health and human services related programs. Establish a mechanism for communicating these program impacts to the Congressional delegation.
5. In the event that Federal block grant legislation is enacted which affects health and human services programs, the working group should evaluate the impact on welfare and Medicaid reform legislation, HB 1863, 74th R.S., and SB 10, 74th R.S., and determine the ability of the state to proceed with enacting both pieces of legislation and evaluate the need to modify either piece of legislation to conform to federal requirements.
Supporting documents
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim minutes, letters to Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock with enclosures, and charts reflecting legislative recommendations submitted to the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services
Library Catalog Title: Minutes
Library Call Number: L1803.9 H88 74
Session: 74th R.S. (1995)
Online version: View document [461 pages  File size: 10,303 kb]
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Committee on Human Services, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 1996 : a report to the House of Representatives, 75th Texas Legislature.
Subjects: Community care | Long-term care | Long-term care insurance | Medicaid | Nursing homes | Persons with disabilities | Quality of care | Senior citizens | Services for persons with disabilities | Welfare reform |
Library Call Number: L1836.74 h88
Session: 74th R.S. (1995)
Online version: View report [106 pages  File size: 5,114 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Monitor the implementation of HB 1836, 74th R.S., passed by the 74th Legislature.
2. Study long-term care for Texans, including possible managed care approaches involving community-based providers, the efficient use and geographic distribution of Medicaid facilities, the effects of the revised enforcement rules for Medicaid facilities, issues related to management contracts and services relating to abuse, neglect and exploitation of the elderly.
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim report - Reforming Medicaid
Library Catalog Title: Reforming Medicaid in Texas : interim report.
Subjects: Child nutrition programs | Fraud | Health and Human Services Commission, Texas | Human Services, Texas Department of | Managed care | Medicaid | Medicaid eligibility | State budgets | Welfare fraud |
Library Call Number: L1836.73 m468
Session: 73rd R.S. (1993)
Online version: View report [137 pages  File size: 7,824 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review and evaluate the options provided by the State Medicaid Director and make recommendations for state or federal administrative action that could be taken in the short term under current law, if any, with the goal of fundamentally changing the Medicaid delivery system to achieve significant savings in the Texas Medicaid Program in FY '96-'97.
2. Review Medicaid and other related programs in Texas and other states, such as Tennessee and Oregon, to identify cost-saving methods that have proven successful or have the potential to prove successful.
3. Identify barriers at the federal level, whether statutory or administrative, that restrict or limit Texas' ability to achieve substantial Medicaid cost-savings.
4. Make recommendations for state legislation, if necessary, to substantially reduce the growth in demand for spending in the 1996-97 Medicaid budget and following budget periods.
5. Review compliance by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission with the requirements of HB 7, 72nd Legislature, 1st Called Session and subsequent amendments thereto.
6. At the direction of the Lieutenant Governor, investigate allegations of fraud, mismanagement or waste in any health and human services program or agency involving substantial loss or risk of future loss to the state.
Supporting documents
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Interim Report - Interest groups' recommendations on Medicaid reform
Library Catalog Title: Interest groups' recommendations on Medicaid reform.
Library Call Number: L1836.73 h349i 1&2
Session: 73rd R.S. (1993)
Committee: Senate Health and Human Services
Title: Committee documentation: daily minutes record, draft minutes, testimony of Richard C. Ladd, HHSC Commissioner (HHSC accomplishments, reorganization, LBB budget recommendations, DHS summary of impact of legislative budget estimates), guardianship
Library Catalog Title: Minutes
Library Call Number: L1803.9 H88 73
Session: 73rd R.S. (1993)
Online version: View document [30 pages  File size: 529 kb]
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim report - Vol 1
Library Catalog Title: Interim report, 1992 : a report to the House of Representatives, 73rd Legislature / Committee on Human Services, Texas House of Representatives.
Subjects: Child abuse | Child Protective Services | Children with disabilities | Emergency medical services | Foster care | Hospital emergency rooms | Inmate health | Medicaid | Mental health services | Mentally disabled persons | Mentally ill persons | Nursing homes | Persons with disabilities | Protective and Regulatory Services, Texas Department of | Quality of care | Services for persons with disabilities | Trauma centers | Women's health |
Library Call Number: L1836.72 h88 1
Session: 72nd R.S. (1991)
Online version: View report [370 pages  File size: 18,729 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study the implementation of the Pre-admissions Screening and Annual Resident Review (PASAAR) (OBRA '87 mandate) including the areas of program design, Alternate Disposition Plan (ADP), accountability, and residents' rights and training.
2. Monitor child protective services in the proposed structure of the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services including criteria used in "priority" classifications and intervention methods and response time per classification; services provided to children over the age of 10 and to special needs children; value of family preservation services; and problems associated with abuse or neglected children in one-parent homes.
3. Study health care in women's correctional facilities.
4. Monitor and Coordinate with the Texas Health Policy Task Force as it relates to trauma care in Texas.
Committee: Joint Nursing Home Rate Reimbursement, Interim
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report of the Joint Interim Committee on Nursing Home Rate Reimbursement : to the 72nd Legislature.
Subjects: Long-term care | Medicaid | Medical reimbursements | Nursing homes |
Library Call Number: L1836.71 n938
Session: 71st R.S. (1989)
Online version: View report [27 pages  File size: 1,021 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Examine the rate-setting methodology for nursing homes to determine what changes are needed to improve patient care, manage growth, and provide reasonable and adequate rates. Also review any unresolved issues contained in the compromise agreement and determine which items it must address.
Supporting documents
Committee: Joint Nursing Home Rate Reimbursement, Interim
Title: Proclamation
Library Catalog Title: Proclamation
Library Call Number: L1800.1 p926
Session: 71st R.S. (1989)
Online version: View document [1 pages  File size: 64 kb]
Committee: Joint Future of Long Term Health Care, Special Task Force
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Report to the 71st Legislature / the Special Task Force on the Future of Long Term Health Care.
Subjects: Assisted living facilities | Community care | Health, Texas Department of | Home health care services | Human Services, Texas Department of | Long-term care | Medicaid | Medical reimbursements | Nursing homes | Nursing shortages | Quality of care | Senior citizens | Services for persons with disabilities |
Library Call Number: L1836.70 l859
Session: 70th R.S. (1987)
Online version: View report [99 pages  File size: 3,408 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Study the current and future status of long term health care in Texas and to analyze all current laws and regulations that affect long term health care, with the goal of providing quality care for residents in the most efficient manner. The study should include: (1) a cost-efficient, simple and completely integrated regulatory system between the Texas Department of Health and the Texas Department of Human Services; (2) a regulatory system that focuses on enhancing quality care through an incentive program with sanctions and penalties carefully defined; (3) a long-term care reimbursement process designed to foster cost containment, good patient access and quality of care; and (4) defining and streamlining the certification process, as well as Medicaid eligibility.
Supporting documents
Committee: Joint Future of Long Term Health Care, Special Task Force
Title: HCR 213, 70th Leg.
Library Call Number: HCR 213, 70th Leg.
Session: 70th R.S. (1987)
Online version: View document [2 pages  File size: 181 kb]
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report of the Committee on Human Services, Texas House of Representatives to the Seventy-first Legislative Session.
Subjects: Attorney General Child Support Division | Blind, Texas Commission for the | Children with disabilities | Education Agency, Texas | Health, Texas Department of | Human Services, Texas Department of | Job training programs | Medicaid | Medicaid Vendor Drug Program | Mental Health and Mental Retardation, Texas Department of | Prescription drugs | Rehabilitation Commission, Texas | Residential treatment centers | State agencies | State supported living centers | Welfare | Welfare reform | Welfare-to-work | Youth Commission, Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.70 h88
Session: 70th R.S. (1987)
Online version: View report [42 pages  File size: 1,707 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. To study the efficiency and economy of the regional boundaries of human service agencies. (Joint study with House Committee on Public Health).
2. To study the feasibility of establishing a co-payment support assistance system based on ability to pay by parents of children in state supported residential care programs.
3. To study and monitor federal welfare reforms and evaluate the impact of such programs on the state AFDC program and state finances.
4. To study the Vendor Drug Program in the Department of Human Services.
Committee: Senate Medicaid and Family Services, Select
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Report and recommendations / Select Committee on Medicaid and Family Services.
Subjects: Medicaid | Medicaid application process | Medicaid eligibility | Medically uninsured | Prenatal care |
Library Call Number: L1836.70 m469
Session: 70th R.S. (1987)
Online version: View report [51 pages  File size: 2,174 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Develop an immediate strategy to implement the opportunities created by new federal and state legislation. The Committee shall examine and evaluate the various options available to the state which will enhance the potential for expanded health and human services for needy Texans. At the same time, the Committee shall explore ways to attract the maximum amount of federal dollars to fund the cost of those programs. The Committee is charged with the responsibility of making recommendations to the Lieutenant Governor, the Legislature and the Board of the Department of Human Services in the following ares: 1. To determine what specific action should be taken or programs initiated during the current biennium which will allow the Department of Human Services to take advantage of current federal laws allowing expanded Medicaid benefits to eligible recipients through the use of matched federal funds. 2. To determine what action should be taken by the State of Texas during the current biennium with Congress or the Administration which might provide additional opportunities for the State of Texas to expand health and human services programs through the use of matched federal funds, and 3. To determine what specific legislative initiatives should be considered by the 71st Legislature consistent with the strategy of maximizing the use of federal funds to enhance the delivery of essential health and human services to needy Texans.
Committee: Senate Medicaid and Family Services, Select Subcommittee on Local Funds
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Local Funds Subcommittee report to the Select Committee on Medicaid and Family Services.
Subjects: Medicaid | Medicaid application process | Medicaid eligibility | Medically uninsured | Prenatal care |
Library Call Number: L1836.70 m469l
Session: 70th R.S. (1987)
Online version: View report [69 pages  File size: 2,709 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Develop an immediate strategy to implement the opportunities created by new federal and state legislation. The Committee shall examine and evaluate the various options available to the state which will enhance the potential for expanded health and human services for needy Texans. At the same time, the Committee shall explore ways to attract the maximum amount of federal dollars to fund the cost of those programs. The Committee is charged with the responsibility of making recommendations to the Lieutenant Governor, the Legislature and the Board of the Department of Human Services in the following ares: 1. To determine what specific action should be taken or programs initiated during the current biennium which will allow the Department of Human Services to take advantage of current federal laws allowing expanded Medicaid benefits to eligible recipients through the use of matched federal funds. 2. To determine what action should be taken by the State of Texas during the current biennium with Congress or the Administration which might provide additional opportunities for the State of Texas to expand health and human services programs through the use of matched federal funds, and 3. To determine what specific legislative initiatives should be considered by the 71st Legislature consistent with the strategy of maximizing the use of federal funds to enhance the delivery of essential health and human services to needy Texans.
Committee: House Retirement and Aging
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report, 70th Legislature / Committee on Retirement and Aging.
Subjects: Affordable housing | Aging and Disability Services, Texas Department of | Employees Retirement System of Texas | Health insurance | Life insurance | Long-term care insurance | Medicaid | Medical reimbursements | Nursing homes | Nursing shortages | Public retirement systems | Senior citizens | Teacher Retirement System of Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.70 r314
Session: 70th R.S. (1987)
Online version: View report [119 pages  File size: 4,409 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. To study the feasibility and cost of expansion of the shared housing program of the Texas Department of Aging.
2. Study the televised advertising of health and life insurance plans aimed at the elderly population.
3. To study the state retirement systems.
4. To study the current and projected financial condition of the private long-term care industry and examine possible funding alternatives, including the feasibility of tax deductible payments for nursing home care.
5. To study the costs and benefits of expanding internal administration of real estate investments in comparison to engaging outside real estate advisors by the Teachers Retirement System.
Committee: Joint Rural Health Care Delivery, Special Task Force
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Report and recommendations / the Special Task Force on Rural Health Care Delivery in Texas.
Subjects: Center for Rural Health Initiatives | Emergency medical services | Medicaid | Medical liability insurance | Medical reimbursements | Nursing shortages | Rural areas | Rural health care | Rural issues | Trauma centers |
Library Call Number: L1836.70 r88
Session: 70th R.S. (1987)
Online version: View report [142 pages  File size: 5,399 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Define minimal desired medical care for rural counties and communities with due regard for population, geography, proximity to tertiary care centers, physician manpower, and medical transportation availability; define the resources available and/or needed to provide a voluntary plan to meet the needs of Texas counties, including methods of financing the implementation and operation of such a voluntary plan; and seek consensus among affected parties to support the plan when and where counties and communities seek to implement it.
Supporting documents
Committee: Joint Rural Health Care Delivery, Special Task Force
Title: SCR 25, 70th Leg.
Library Call Number: SCR 25
Session: 70th R.S. (1987)
Online version: View document [2 pages  File size: 170 kb]
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report of the Committee on Human Services, Texas House of Representatives to the Seventieth Legislative Session, 1986.
Subjects: Assisted living facilities | Child care | Child Protective Services | Criminal records | Long-term care | Medicaid | Medical reimbursements | Medicare | Mental health services | Nursing homes | Poverty | Preferred provider organizations | Privatization | Senior citizens | State employee turnover | Teenage pregnancy | Welfare | Welfare-to-work |
Library Call Number: L1836.69 h88
Session: 69th R.S. (1985)
Online version: View report [178 pages  File size: 9,803 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. To study the Aid to Families with Dependent Children Program (AFDC), including the problems of needy children and their families, the various employment, training and education programs, and other options designed to help Texas families become self-supporting.
2. To study the problems encountered by the elderly in gaining access to appropriate post-hospital health care services, including skilled nursing and custodial services.
3. To study the Child Protective Services Program of the Department of Human Services regarding case workloads and staffing requirements.
4. To study the implementation of criminal background check legislation for child-care workers including the use of federal funds for caregiver training.
5. To study continuing care communities and other options for the well-elderly.
6. To study the problems of preventing unwanted teenage pregnancy, preventing poor parenting by teenagers, and preventing unemployment and poverty in teen-headed families.
7. To study the advantages and disadvantages of the preferred provider insurance plan, with particular emphasis on consideration of quality of services, access to services, cost of care rendered, the effect on existing physician-patient relationships, and a proposed legislative/regulatory structure for such medical care delivery and financing arrangements; in conjunction with Insurance and Public Health Committees.
8. To study the utilization of and potential for further development of privatization of care for the mentally ill and mentally retarded in the State, in conjunction with Appropriations and Law Enforcement committees.
9. To study the impact on Medicare-Medicaid and associated state health and welfare costs of the elimination of the certificate of need process in Texas.
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report of the Committee on Human Services, Texas House of Representatives, to the Sixty-ninth legislative session.
Subjects: Alternative medicine | Blind, Texas Commission for the | Child care | Children with disabilities | Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Texas Commission for the | Dyslexia | Food stamps | Grants | Learning disabilities | Medicaid | Occupational licenses | Persons with disabilities | Welfare |
Library Call Number: L1836.68 h88
Session: 68th R.S. (1983)
Online version: View report [276 pages  File size: 10,635 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. To monitor all activities and have budget oversight responsibilities for those agencies, boards and commissions as listed in Rule 3, Section 15.
2. To study child-care needs of parents in Texas and to study child-care services in Texas.
3. To study the duplication and coordination of various grants-in-aid programs by the federal government (categorical and block grants), relating to human services.
4. To study dyslexia and related learning disabilities.
5. To review the use of telecommunication devices for the deaf, including their use in state offices and emergency centers and their availability to the general deaf community.
6. To review services to the deaf in Texas, including the deaf-blind. This study should consider each state agency that offers services to the deaf, including the State Commission for the Deaf, the Texas Rehabilitation Commission and the School for the Deaf. In addition, the study should cover federal, local and private service agencies.
7. To study the visually-handicapped children's program in the State Commission for the Blind.
8. To study chelation therapy, acupuncture and the practice of human ecology, in cooperation with the House Committee on Public Health.
9. To study the need for establishing a licensing requirement and educational standard for radiological technologists.
Committee: House Retirement and Aging
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: To the Speaker and members of the Texas House of Representatives, 69th Legislature ; interim report / of the House Committee on Retirement and Aging.
Subjects: Community care | Long-term care | Medicaid | Nursing homes | Senior citizens |
Library Call Number: L1836.68 r314
Session: 68th R.S. (1983)
Online version: View report [42 pages  File size: 1,382 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. To study alternative care services for the elderly, the scope of these services, and their cost effectiveness.
2. To determine whether or not there is a need to restore the Intermediate Care Facility II nursing care program to a full or modified degree.
3. To study the health care status of persons who have been denied entry into a long-term care facility and whether or not the screening process is comprehensive and equitable.
Committee: Senate Human Resources
Title: Interim Report - Health Issues
Library Catalog Title: Response to Senate resolution 764 and Senate resolution 657 : rubella population, school health policy, medically needy issues, impact of new federalism.
Subjects: Federal funds | Indigent health care | Medicaid | Persons with disabilities | School-based health clinics |
Library Call Number: L1836.67 r822
Session: 67th R.S. (1981)
Online version: View report [43 pages  File size: 1,232 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Conduct a study of the low-functioning rubella population of Texas, including documentation of the size of the population, the degree and nature of their impairments, and the resulting impact on state programs.
2. Conduct a study of the standards which should be established for health care services provided by school districts and of the standards for staffing of school health programs.
3. Conduct an investigation of the health-care needs of the medically indigent population of Texas and persons living in medically underserved areas of the state.
4. Conduct such interim studies and evaluations of human services programs as are necessary to determine the appropriate role of the agencies involved and the effect on citizens receiving services from these prorams.
Supporting documents
Committee: Senate Human Resources
Title: SR 764
Library Call Number: SR 764
Session: 67th R.S. (1981)
Online version: View document [5 pages  File size: 1,114 kb]
Committee: House Human Services
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: To the speaker and members of the Texas House of Representatives, 68th Legislature : report of the / Human Services Committee, Texas House of Representatives, 67th Legislature.
Subjects: Aging and Disability Services, Texas Department of | Air quality | Blind, Texas Commission for the | Child abuse | Child Protective Services | Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Texas Commission for the | Elder abuse | Hazardous substances | Manufactured housing | Medicaid | Outdoor recreation | Senior citizens | State agency budgets | Welfare |
Library Call Number: L1836.67 h89
Session: 67th R.S. (1981)
Online version: View report [309 pages  File size: 11,172 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Oversight functions shall be conducted for all appropriations-related actions of those agencies assigned to this committee for appropriative purposes during the 67th Regular Session of the Legislature. In addition, a study should be made of the impact of any federal cuts, and the differences in the operation aspect of the agencies under block vs. categorical grants. These agencies include: Department of Human Resources Texas Commission for the Blind Texas Commission for the Deaf Texas Department of Community Affairs Texas Rehabilitation Commission Board of Licensure of Nursing Home Administrators Department of Aging The Veterans Affairs Commission
2. Track the development of the newly created Department of Aging. Investigate protective services for the elderly, currently provided by Department of Human Resources, and determine whether the Department of Aging could effectively take over those duties.
3. Develop background information on the general subject area of battered children and conduct and investigation into protective services for children provided by state agencies. (Do agencies overlap in authority, number of calls answered per month, effective results, justification or program, etc.)
4. Conduct and in-depth study of the AFDC program. Look at descriptive data such as turnover rate, ethnic breakdown, percentage of fraud. Consider the effect of abolishment of ceiling on payments if amendment passes in November of 1982.
5. Monitor the development of outdoor training programs under the Commission for the Deaf.
6. Study the detrimental effects of formaldehyde use to determine what actions need to be taken to protect the health of the general public.
7. Monitor state procurement and program changes of Medicaid Services in Texas.
8. Study activities and programs of the Texas Commission for the Blind including the Commission's efficiency in relation to its contracted services.
Committee: House Health and Welfare
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Report of the Committee on Health and Welfare, Texas House of Representatives, 64th Legislature, to the Speaker and members of the Texas House of Representatives, 65th Legislature.
Subjects: Medicaid | Mental Health and Mental Retardation, Texas Department of | Mental health services | Public Welfare, Texas Department of | San Antonio State Hospital | State supported living centers |
Library Call Number: L1936.64 h349
Session: 64th R.S. (1975)
Online version: View report [37 pages  File size: 1,070 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review the operations at the San Antonio State Hospital and the Lubbock State School, *
2. Review the procedures used by the Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation when placing patients in nursing homes. *
3. Review the operations of the Bexar County Mental Health and Mental Retardation Center. *
4. Review the operations of the Department of Public Welfare. *
5. Review the Medicaid contract between the Texas Department of Public Welfare and Blue Cross. *
Supporting documents
Committee: House Health and Welfare
Title: Report
Library Catalog Title: Texas Department of Mental Health Mental Retardation background : need for planning
Library Call Number: M1000.1 B126
Session: 64th R.S. (1975)
Online version: View document [43 pages]
Committee: House Medical Welfare Program, Interim
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Texas medical welfare program : a report to the House of the 63rd Legislature / by the House Interim Committee on Medical Welfare.
Subjects: Indigent health care | Medicaid | Medical reimbursements |
Library Call Number: L1836.62 M468
Session: 62nd R.S. (1971)
Online version: View report [39 pages  File size: 1,157 kb]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Study the entire medical welfare program in the state of Texas, giving special attention to the desirability and feasibility of implementing the following changes: (1) Placing a limit on the number of days a beneficiary can stay in the hospital; (2) Requesting the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare give permission to the State to limit the cost of hospital rooms for Medicaid patients to a figure in line with that provided in private health insurance plans for families earning $8,000 to $10,000 a year; (3) Establishing a fixed fee schedule to replace "usual, and customary fees" charged Medicaid patients; and (4) Establishing a surgical schedule for Medicaid like that provided in private insurance plans, including a limit to be paid physicians for obstetrical care.
Supporting documents
Committee: House Medical Welfare Program, Interim
Title: The Blue Cross Role in Medicaid
Library Catalog Title: Testimony, The Blue Cross Role in Medicaid / prepared for the House Interim Committee on Medical Welfare by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas.
Library Call Number: L1836.62 M468B
Session: 62nd R.S. (1971)
Online version: View document [127 pages  File size: 2,743 kb]
Committee: House Medical Welfare Program, Interim
Title: Transcript, May 19, 1972, Dallas
Library Catalog Title: Minutes
Library Call Number: L1836.62 M468H 5/19
Session: 62nd R.S. (1971)
Online version: View document [48 pages  File size: 14,651 kb]
Committee: House Medical Welfare Program, Interim
Title: Statement by L. Dean Cobb, Chairman, December 19, 1972
Library Catalog Title: Minutes
Library Call Number: L1836.62 M468MS
Session: 62nd R.S. (1971)
Online version: View document [17 pages  File size: 948 kb]

* This represents an abstract of the report contents. Charge text is incomplete or unavailable.

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