Occupied with reining in rising property taxes and overhauling the school finance system, state lawmakers left Austin last month without substantively addressing other long-standing issues: the high number of uninsured Texas residents and problems that still plague the child foster care system.
Advocates were encouraged that bills addressing shortcomings in state social services, including those that would have expanded Medicaid, received public committee hearings at the beginning of the legislative session — something previous Legislatures had been loath to do. But dozens of bills — including those that would have extended Medicaid coverage for new mothers, prepared older teenagers to make the transition out of foster care, and instituted trauma-informed care across the child welfare system — died in large part because they carried hefty price tags.
More >> Lawmakers overlook high rates of uninsured, foster care fixes
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