The new rulings could result in a decrease in the number of lawsuits surrounding vaccines.
Health care
In-depth reporting on public health, healthcare policy, hospitals, and wellness issues shaping communities across Texas, from The Texas Tribune.
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Health care
Disease Mismanagement?
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.
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Demographics
“The Texas of Today is the U.S. of Tomorrow”
That’s what former state demographer Steve Murdock says about the dramatic population shifts happening throughout the state and the country — and why they matter.
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Demographics
Census and Sensibility
“You want a good count both because you want to have your representation and because you want to get the resources your community needs,” says demographer Steve Murdock.
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Criminal Justice
On the Records: Visualize Texas’ Growth
Yesterday, Google formally announced its public data explorer, a cool new tool allowing anyone to make visualizations of government records and post them as embeds online.
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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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Criminal Justice
On the Records: The Census. It’s Happening.
This week, most mailboxes across Texas will get a notice from the U.S. Census Bureau. The message: Participate in the decennial count, which begins next week.
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Health care
A Medicaid Mess
Texas’ senior care industry — still reeling from federal Medicare cuts — may face another financial blow, as the state considers reducing Medicaid provider rates to balance the budget in the face of a $10 billion-plus shortfall.
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Health care
HD-20: AP Calls it for Schwertner
The AP calls the HD-20 race for state Rep. Dan Gattis’ seat for orthopedic surgeon Dr. Charles Schwertner, who outspent the three other candidates.
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Health care
HD-20: Schwertner Leading in Four-Way Race
Early returns show the four-way scrum for the Texas House seat of outgoing state Rep. Dan Gattis, R-Georgetown, isn’t as close as some had predicted. Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Charles Schwertner is way up.