Texas has spent tens of millions of dollars on “disease management” — phone calls and check-ins with Medicaid patients designed to control costly chronic illnesses and save money. The jury’s still out on whether it worked, but the state’s preparing to rebid the contract anyway.
Emily Ramshaw
Emily Ramshaw was the editor-in-chief of The Texas Tribune from 2016 to 2020. During her tenure, the Tribune — billed “one of the nonprofit news sector’s runaway success stories” — won a Peabody Award, several national Murrow Awards and top honors from the Online News Association.
Before joining the Tribune in 2010 as one of its founding reporters, Ramshaw spent six years at The Dallas Morning News, where she broke national stories about sexual abuse inside Texas’ youth lock-ups, reported from inside a West Texas polygamist compound and uncovered “fight clubs” inside state institutions for the disabled. The Texas APME named Ramshaw its 2008 star reporter of the year. In 2016, she was named to the board of the Pulitzer Prizes.
A native of Washington, D.C., and the product of two journalist parents, Ramshaw graduated from Northwestern University in 2003 with dual degrees in journalism and American history.
Posted in
State Government
TribBlog: Rep. Allen Vaught, D-Hollywood [Updated]
Iraq War veteran and Dallas state Rep. Allen Vaught will add one other credential to his resume this week: movie star.
Posted in
Health care
DNA Destruction
In the weeks before state health officials incinerated more than 5 million baby blood samples that they stored without consent, privacy advocates, parents and legislators reached a last-ditch accord to save them but couldn’t convince the Department of State Health Services to sign on. A Texas Tribune investigation found that the agency had turned hundreds of such samples over to a federal Armed Forces lab to build a DNA database — and hadn’t been upfront about it with lawmakers or the public.
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State Government
TribBlog: Insurance Department Could Ban Discretionary Clauses
The Texas Department of Insurance has drafted rules that would ban health insurance policies from including so-called “discretionary clauses.” Those are the rules that many patients hate, which allow their health insurers to decide exactly what they cover and what they don’t — and give the insurers a degree of protection from litigation.
Posted inState Government
Surprise!
Not every race turned out the way political insiders — or the candidates themselves — anticipated. Here are a dozen primary races that defied conventional wisdom, stunned the incumbents and shocked the longshots.
Posted in
Public Education
TribBlog: Restraints Bill Passes U.S. House
The U.S. House has passed the Keeping All Students Safe Act, a measure designed to protect students from abusive restraints in school settings.
Posted in
State Government
Who Won, Who Lost
For the last two months, we’ve brought you news and analysis on 20 hotly contested primaries. Here’s a look at who won, who lost, and who’s headed for a runoff in the top legislative and congressional races.
Posted inState Government
HD-102: With Most Precincts In, Carter Way Ahead
Former Collin County prosecutor Stefani Carter appears to have handily defeated Geoffrey Bailey, a consultant to T. Boone Pickens, in the District 102 Republican primary. With 92 percent of precincts in, she has 75 percent of the vote. It looks like she’ll be running against incumbent Democratic Rep. Carol Kent in the general election.
Posted inState Government
HD-101: Burkett Wins, Narrowly Avoids Runoff
Mesquite businesswoman Cindy Burkett narrowly avoided a runoff in the District 101 Republican primary, winning just over 50 percent of the vote to defeat former Mesquite Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Greg Noschese and former state Rep. Thomas Latham. She will face freshman Democratic Rep. Robert Miklos in November.
Posted inState Government
HD-105: Haldenwang Defeats Limberg
With all precincts reporting, Irving business consultant Loretta Haldenwang defeated former Texas Department of Transportation director Kim Limberg in the House District 105 Democratic primary.
