Subject search results

21 Document(s) [ Subject: Health%20care ]

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 Make recommendations for state and agency level mandates and regulations that could be relaxed or repealed to increase the availability and affordability of private health coverage options in this state; and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: Joint Aging
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Health care | Senior citizens | Veterans |
Library Call Number: L1836.85 Ag48
Session: 85th R.S. (2017)
Online version: View report [16 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; makes recommendations to address issues.
Committee: House Health Care Education and Training, Select
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Education | Health care | Health care providers | Higher education | Job training programs | Mental health services |
Library Call Number: L1836.83 H349ce
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View report [36 pages]
Charge: This report should address the charge below.
1. Assess the statewide demand for health professionals, including in the area of mental health. Make recommendations to better align institutions of public and higher education with the needs of health care employers.
Supporting documents
Committee: House Health Care Education and Training, Select
Title: Committee meeting handout, August 28, 2014 (Texas health information technology: employer needs assessment report, Texas State University-San Marcos, Susan H. Fenton, PhD, Project Director, February 3, 2012)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [60 pages]
Committee: House Health Care Education and Training, Select
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, August 28, 2014 (Health care workforce data and statistics, Health care workforce state employment programs and initiatives, Public and higher education programs and policies, University health science programs and initiatives, Higher education institutional programs and initiatives, Industry needs and perspective, Additional testimony)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [300 pages  File size: 22,532 kb]
Committee: House Health Care Education and Training, Select
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, September 16, 2014 (Mental healthcare workforce state policy and provider perspective, Mental health education and community programs, Additional testimony)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [189 pages  File size: 20,147 kb]
Committee: House Health Care Education and Training, Select
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, October 6, 2014 (Health care workforce, including National Conference of State Legislatures and Texas Workforce Commission)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [64 pages  File size: 5,810 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: 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 State Affairs
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report to the 82nd Legislature
Subjects: Employees Retirement System of Texas | Financial investments | Fraud | Health care | Health care costs | Health insurance | Hospitals | Insurance agents | Insurance rates | Medically uninsured | Military personnel | Open government | Open Meetings Act, Texas | Public Information Act, Texas | Senior citizens | Teacher Retirement System of Texas | Voter registration | Voters | Voting by mail | Voting systems | Workers' compensation |
Library Call Number: L1836.81 ST29a
Session: 81st R.S. (2009)
Online version: View report [248 pages  File size: 24,817 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, 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 Health and Human Services Committee)
2. Monitor the actuarial and financial conditions of the pension and health care programs administered by the Teacher Retirement System and the Employees Retirement System. Assess the effectiveness of pilot programs designed to encourage the use of clinical integration, payments for good outcomes, use of best practices, focus on wellness and prevention, and bundling of costs for episodes of care, and other health care savings initiatives. Make recommendations for expanding the pilot programs for use across all private and state sponsored health care, including the Medicaid program, as a means to improve Texans' health and provide more effective care that allows for assistance for the uninsured. (SB 7, SB 8 and SB 10, 81st Legislature)
3. Study the implementation of the Healthy Texas program enacted by the 81st Legislature and the ongoing implementation of SB 1731, 80th Legislature, to determine if this program is effectively lowering health insurance costs and increasing access to health insurance for small business. Study and make recommendations about using this program to increase access to health insurance for sole proprietors. Review other states efforts to lower health care costs to small business owners and sole proprietors and incentivize small business owners and sole proprietors to purchase insurance.
4. Examine best practices for increasing the affordability and availability of health insurance in the individual and small group market, including medical underwriting practices, rescission of coverage, cancellation of coverage, rate regulation, and reporting of medical loss ratios.
5. Study how increased out-of-pocket costs for medications and treatment impact consumers' compliance with health care recommendations and how that response impacts overall health care costs. Review available research into value design programs.
6. Study ways to improve the efficiency and accuracy of voter registration rolls, including the feasibility and security of online registration and automatic registration and the accuracy of verification and purging of voters. Recommend ways to ensure that deceased or otherwise ineligible voters are not included on rolls while also ensuring that all eligible applicants are efficiently registered.
7. Study the transparency of organizational structures, policies and coverage associated with health insurance underwriters/agents and the relationship between underwriters/agents and policyholders.
8. Study the sale of annuities in Texas, particularly to seniors. Evaluate the requirements relating to rescission of an annuity contract, payment of surrender fees, return of money, contract forms, including a standard contract form, buyer's guide, agent's commission and disclosure of an agent's commission. Make recommendations for legislation, if needed, and consider whether the insurance commissioner by rule may limit an agent's commission.
9. Study the effect Texas hospital billing and collection practices have on the uninsured's and under-insured's access to hospital health care services, on the uninsured's and under­insured's economic circumstances, and on medical debt recorded as bad debt on hospital books and records. Assess whether hospital billing disparities involving pricing discounts between the uninsured and insured exist and make recommendations for any changes necessary.
10. Study the adequacy of workers' compensation benefits in the following categories: lifetime income benefits, wage benefits for the high wage earner, and workers whose wage benefits stop before Social Security benefits begin. In order to determine the impact of increased benefits in one or more of these categories, work with the Texas Department of Insurance to develop a publicly accessible model to predict the costs related to those enhanced benefits, the effect of those costs on workers' compensation premiums, and whether enrollment in the workers' compensation system will be adversely impacted by increasing the benefits in one or more of the stated categories.
11. Study whether subrogation claims by writers of workers' compensation policies should be limited or prohibited. Study the effect on workers' compensation premiums, if any, if subrogation claims by writers of workers' compensation policies are limited or prohibited. Consider the feasibility of developing a publicly accessible model to predict the impact on workers' compensation premiums, if any, if subrogation claims by writers of workers' compensation policies are limited or prohibited, while protecting confidentiality as required by law and study whether the impact on workers' compensation premiums, if any, would adversely impact enrollment in the workers' compensation system.
12. Study and make recommendations regarding access to voting by members of the military serving in the United States and abroad, including the feasibility of electronic delivery of ballots.
13. Study the Public Information Act and the Open Meetings Act to ensure that government continues to operate in a way that is open and transparent. The study should consider how advances in technology and the emergence of various forms of social media (e.g. Facebook, MySpace, Twitter) have affected communications by and within governmental bodies.
14. Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on State Affairs, 81 st Legislature, Regular and Called Sessions, and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation.
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
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 Binational Health Benefit Plan Coverage, Interim
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Report of the Interim Committee on Binational Health Benefit Plan Coverage.
Subjects: Border health | Health care | Health care providers | Health insurance |
Library Call Number: L1836.77 b51
Session: 77th R.S. (2001)
Online version: View report [140 pages  File size: 8,344 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study the provision of binational health benefit plan coverage.
2. Hold hearings in the border areas of the state to: (1) determine the need for binational health benefit plan coverage; (2) assess the health care needs of the border area and how those needs can be served by various types of providers; and (3) assess the affordability, cost-effectiveness, economic impact, and improved health status achievable through binational health benefit plan coverage.
Committee: Joint Mandated Health Benefits, Interim
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Joint Interim Committee on Mandated Health BenefitsTexas House of Representatives interim report, 2000 : a report to the 77th Texas Legislature.
Subjects: Health care | Health insurance | Insurance industry | Medically uninsured | State mandates |
Library Call Number: L1836.76 h348b
Session: 76th R.S. (1999)
Online version: View report [109 pages  File size: 5,185 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. HB 1919, 76th R.S., charged the Committee to study and make recommendations on the following: the effect of mandated benefits on the cost and accessibility of health benefit coverages
2. the effect of mandated benefits on improving and maintaining the health of Texans
3. the number and percentage of residents making claims for the mandated benefits
4. the impact and feasibility of eliminating, revising, or providing alternatives to mandated benefits.
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 Public Health
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Committee on Public Health, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 1994 : a report to the House of Representatives, 74th Texas Legislature.
Subjects: Food safety | Health care | Health, Texas Department of |
Library Call Number: L1836.73 h349
Session: 73rd R.S. (1993)
Online version: View report [75 pages  File size: 3,320 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Conduct active oversight of agencies under the committee's jurisdiction, including a study of mandated reports to the legislature and legislative agencies. The study should consist of a review of the legislative reporting requirements of all agencies to identify areas where reporting obligations could be streamlined and agency accountability improved. The committee shall make specific recommendations about the continuation, modification or elimination of required legislative reports.
2. Evaluate the effectiveness of state and federal food safety programs to improve public confidence in Texas food products and understanding of methods for safe food preparation.
3. Study and design a system to collect Texas health care information, including information costs and quality of care. Priority emphasis should be given to detailed cost information that can be used to evaluate and support changes in provider reimbursement levels and methodologies, including cost containment initiatives.
Committee: House Public Health
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Committee on Public Health, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 1992 : a report to the House of Representatives, 73rd Legislature.
Subjects: Border health | Border issues | Child nutrition programs | Dental care | Health care | Indigent health care | Lead contamination | Lead-based paint | Long-term care | Medical reimbursements | Nursing homes | Prescription drugs | Senior citizens | Solid waste disposal | Tuberculosis | Undocumented immigrants |
Library Call Number: L1836.72 h349
Session: 72nd R.S. (1991)
Online version: View report [62 pages  File size: 2,694 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study medical waste disposal in coordination with Committee on Environmental Affairs.
2. Study health care reimbursement, and coordinate with and monitor the Texas Health Policy Task Force as it relates to this issue.
3. Study the administration of medication in hospitals, nursing homes and extended care facilities.
4. Study the problems associated with indigent health care provided to the citizens of Mexico in the border regions of Texas.
5. Study tuberculosis testing, treatment, and control.
6. Study the reporting of childhood lead poisoning.
7. Study the adoption of an enforceable lead ban.
8. Study oral health in long term care facilities.
9. Study chronic disease prevention by instituting dietary changes in publicly-funded food services.
Committee: House Insurance
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report, Sixty Sixth Legislative session / the Committee on Insurance, Texas House of Representatives.
Subjects: Automobile insurance | Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 | Health care | Health insurance | Health maintenance organizations | Insurance industry | Insurance, Texas State Board of | Teacher health insurance |
Library Call Number: L1836.65 in7
Session: 65th R.S. (1977)
Online version: View report [132 pages  File size: 5,870 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. A study of the assigned risk plan with its effects on insurance rates and availability as well as other impact it may have, including research and recommendations on special rating categories.
2. A study of health insurance, to include health insurance at the state level, mandatory health insurance, minimum standards for health insurance policies, conversion of policies, standard provisions, and group insurance for public school employees.
3. Oversight responsibility of agency expenditures and related transactions. This function shall encompass a review and monitoring of all appropriations-related actions of those agencies assigned to this committee for appropriative purposes during the 65th Regular Session of the Legislature, to wit: Board of Insurance
4. A study of the current definition of Texas securities as they affect insurance companies in the state; include the drafting of such a definition to regulate investments in securities by insurance companies more effectively; and make recommendations to achieve a more equitable method of premium taxation on insurance companies doing business in the state of Texas.
5. A study of the services an insurance administrator performs, the methodology of regulating this growing profession, and the degree of necessity thereof, and a further study of the licensing and education requirements for insurance agents in general.

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