The Texas foster care system has been throwing off increasingly desperate distress signals for months. It falls to caseworkers like 27-year-old Daniel Hernandez to try to keep it working.
Edgar Walters
Edgar Walters worked at the Tribune from 2013 to 2020, most recently covering health and human services. Before that, he had a political reporting fellowship with the Berliner Zeitung, a daily newspaper in Berlin. He is a graduate of the Plan II Honors Program at the University of Texas at Austin, where he worked as an editor for The Daily Texan. When not in the newsroom or at the Capitol, he could be found on the volleyball court, standing 6 feet, 7 inches tall.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Foster Care Teen Arrested in UT Student’s Death
A 17-year-old arrested in connection with the death of University of Texas at Austin student Haruka Weiser is in the care of the Texas foster youth system, an official said Friday.
Posted in
Health care
Emails Show Abbott’s Involvement at Child Welfare Agency
Six days after Gov. Greg Abbott took office, he faced the first death of a child under state care. Emails obtained by The Texas Tribune capture his staff’s efforts, and frustrations, trying to fix the state’s embattled foster care system.
Posted in
Politics
911 Call in Senate Race to Remain Sealed Until After Election
Records related to the mental health of state Rep. Susan King, R-Abilene, will remain sealed at least until Nov. 21, punting a potentially thorny issue for the Texas Senate candidate until after the election.
Posted in
Health care
Courts Rebuff Texas Bid to Slow Foster Care Fixes
A federal appeals court on Monday rejected Attorney General Ken Paxton’s efforts to block the appointment of special masters to oversee reforms in the state’s troubled foster care system.
Posted in
Health care
More Kids Sleeping in State Offices Amid Foster Shortage
The number of children sleeping in Child Protective Services offices shot up after an internal policy change at the agency limited child placements, according to state data released Thursday.
Posted in
Politics
Accusations Fly in Senate Runoff Over 911 Call, Mental Health Records
Sealed medical records related to the mental health of state Rep. Susan King, R-Abilene, became a flash point in the Republican primary runoff for Senate District 24 on Thursday.
Posted in
Politics
Obama: Texas Leaders “Aren’t Interested” in Higher Voter Turnout
Texas’ Republican leadership has stifled voter turnout, and the public sector should do more to encourage online voting and other civic engagement, President Barack Obama said in an interview Friday with Tribune CEO and Editor-in-Chief Evan Smith.
Posted in
Health care
Texas Caseworkers Call For Foster Care Reforms
A new group has joined the chorus lambasting Texas for resisting court-ordered reforms to its foster care system: its own employees who work with children.
Posted in
Health care
Insurers Want More Room for Generic Drugs in Texas Medicaid
Health plans say they could save Texas roughly $100 million per year in Medicaid costs if lawmakers would give them more freedom to choose generic drugs over name brands.
