Emergency medical technicians and entry-level nurses could be cut out of the telemedicine equation under a proposal the Texas Medical Board is considering. The change would prohibit anyone but doctors, physicians’ assistants and advanced practice nurses from presenting patients for care via long-distance videoconferencing – a move rural hospitals and prison doctors adamantly oppose.
State Government
Stay informed on Texas state government with The Texas Tribune’s in-depth coverage of the governor, Legislature, state agencies, and policies shaping the future of Texas.
And the Winner is…
by Matt Stiles, The Texas Tribune Gov. Rick Perry appointed Houston appellate court justice Eva Guzman to the Texas Supreme Court, making the 48-year-old the first Latina to serve on that court.
Katherine Glass Interview Part 2
An interview with Katherine Youngblood Glass, the Libertarian Party of Texas’ candidate for governor.
Reluctantly out in front
Most elected officials greet a chairmanship with some excitement. Gail Lowe, the Lampasas Republican who recently became the chair of the State Board of Education, is approaching her new title with some apprehension.
Too busy for a review
Just days before it was set to review a case in which the state has been accused of executing an innocent man, Gov. Rick Perry replaced the chairman and two other members of an independent state forensics panel.
State technology chief resigns
The executive director of the state’s data and information technology agency stepped down last month. Brian Rawson, who spent the last three years overseeing the state’s data consolidation and telecommunications efforts for the Department of Information Resources, will run “statewide data initiatives” for the Texas Education Agency.
Goin’ to the chapel
Wedding bells rang for state Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, this weekend in the tiny old mining town of Shafter, near Big Bend National Park.
Watch That Date
Monday is K-Day. If Kay Bailey Hutchison quits before then, the election to replace her can be held on November 3. If she quits after that date, the replacement race will be held later.
Looking for the Levers
Kay Bailey Hutchison rebounded in the most recent poll from Rasmussen Reports, but one of Gov. Rick Perry’s hottest arguments rests on the rhetoric of “I’m from Austin; she’s from Washington.” And while the latest polling has the two gubernatorial candidates locked in a tight race, it’s a contest that initially — almost a year ago — was polling strongly in Hutchison’s favor.
Present but not accounted for
The State Auditor says the Texas Education Agency’s process for monitoring average daily attendance in public schools needs a few adjustments.


