The Federal Trade Commission is warning that one of the key health care reform bills trumpeted by Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, could substantially harm consumers.
Jane Nelson
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Health care
Budget Cuts Jeopardize Care for Critically Ill Children
Facing an estimated 28 percent reduction in funds to care for medically fragile children, in-home nursing companies say they could be forced to shut their doors, or else dramatically slash what they pay nurses.
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Energy
Senate Discusses Fracking Disclosure Bill
A Senate committee heard testimony this morning from Halliburton and others on a bill that would require drilling companies to disclose the chemicals they use in hydraulic fracturing. The bill has been left pending until the House takes a final vote on its version.
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Health care
Institutions for Disabled Unlikely to See Major Cuts
Advocates for shuttering Texas’ institutions for the disabled thought they had the numbers on their side: a budget crisis so severe that lawmakers would have to close some state-supported living centers. With less than a month left in the session, their hopes are largely dashed.
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Health care
Senate Approves Medicaid Savings Bill
The Senate unanimously approved Sen. Jane Nelson’s bill to find extensive cost savings in Texas’ Medicaid program, the primary health care provider for children, the disabled and the very poor.
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Health care
Has Patient Privacy Bill Hit a Snag?
State Rep. Lois Kolkhorst’s bill to further protect Texans’ private medical information looks stuck; it’s been three weeks since it passed out of committee, and it hasn’t yet been set for a House vote.
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Economy
Video: House Unlikely to Support Senate Budget
The Senate Finance Committee passed a budget this week that proposes spending about $12 billion more than the House in the next biennium. At first glance, House Appropriations Chair Jim Pitts says there’s no way his chamber can meet the Senate halfway.
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Economy
Senate Panel OKs Expanding Managed Care to Valley
A bill designed to find cost savings and efficiencies in Texas’ costly Medicaid program — and, more controversially, expand managed care into the Rio Grande Valley — is moving to Senate budget writers for consideration.
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Economy
When Cutting the Budget Actually Costs Money
Cutting the budget can be expensive. Something that appears to save money can, on further inspection, cost more. Family planning, for instance.
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Health care
Health Payment Reform Bills Get Warm Reception
Two sweeping bills to reward patient outcomes — as opposed to the current system that incentivizes overutilization — got a warm welcome in a Senate committee hearing this morning.
