UPDATED: The boards of both Baylor Health Care System and Scott & White Healthcare have signed a letter of intent to merge the two organizations, creating a $7.7 billion health network called Baylor Scott & White Health.

The rates of elective surgery for Medicare patients vary dramatically depending on which part of the state Texans live in, according to new research from the Dartmouth Atlas Project, which analyzes medical referrals, procedures and health care costs across the nation.

At our Hot Seat conversation at Trinity University in San Antonio, state Rep. Mike Villarreal, D-San Antonio, and state Sen.-elect Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels, sparred about public education, health care and other issues in play in the upcoming 83rd session.

Despite Gov. Rick Perry’s firm opposition to Medicaid expansion, a key tenet of federal health reform, Texas Democrats remain optimistic that the 2013 legislative session can yield a deal on the issue.

At this morning's TribLive conversation, incoming state Reps. Cecil Bell Jr., Giovanni Capriglione and Mary Gonzalez discussed what Texas should do about the Affordable Care Act now that President Obama has been re-elected.

Ahead of a Friday deadline to decide, Gov. Rick Perry’s office has reaffirmed that Texas will not implement a major tenet of federal health reform — a state-based online marketplace for consumers to purchase coverage.

In what one federal official described as "one of the largest Medicare fraud takedowns in Department of Justice history," the Medicare Fraud Strike Force indicted 91 people in seven cities on Thursday, including 28 in Dallas and Houston.

Texas, it’s official: We have the worst rate of health insurance coverage in the country. That creates a huge financial burden on the health care system and the insured. Is politics standing in the way of reform?

We're liveblogging this weekend from The Texas Tribune Festival's Health & Human Services track, which includes panels on the Affordable Care Act, family planning, stem cell policy and the upcoming legislative session.

Texas has more uninsured people than any other state in the nation. But state demographers say that if Texas implemented federal reforms, the number of uninsured here would be halved by 2014.

More than a quarter of all Texans younger than 65 were uninsured in 2010, the highest rate in the nation, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This interactive map shows the percent of Texans in each county who lacked health insurance.

Nearly a third of Texans are obese. Limited access to healthy food options is part of the problem, particularly in low-income communities. This map shows the percentage of food retailers that offer healthy options by census tract, as calculated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This interactive breaks down Medicaid dental program data as the system poses challenges for lawmakers, dental providers and the children they serve.

The Affordable Care Act requires states to maintain eligibility requirements for Medicaid and CHIP through 2019. But Gov. Rick Perry and the Republican Governors Association oppose the provision, and some families in Texas fear children's health care could be in jeopardy.

While Texas works to fix a system that allowed dental clinics to charge the state millions in questionable Medicaid bills, dental providers say impoverished Texas children are being left in a lurch.

Thanks to a new rule in the federal Affordable Care Act, insured Texans could receive nearly $167 million in rebates from their health insurance companies this month. 

From the evolution of state and federally subsidized contraception to the battle over Planned Parenthood to the cost of unplanned pregnancies, this six-part series is the most comprehensive look yet at the politics of reproductive health in Texas.

Use our interactive map to chart the locations of health care providers participating in Texas' Women's Health Program. Flip through various map styles to compare women's health statistics statewide, or get a video tutorial here.