Health & wellness
BY HANNAH NORTON
Lawmakers seek ‘innovative’ health options as 5 million Texans uninsured
High health care costs
68%
Nearly half of Texans have employer- sponsored health insurance.
About 68% of Texas’ 3.2 million small businesses do not offer health coverage for their employees.
Services Committee. Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, said giving people the true costs of medical ser- vices—“the needle, the doctor, the electricity and the bed”—could help lower insurance premiums. “It’s really frustrating to talk about health insurance costs when the cost is made up of some- thing that reflects no sense of reality,” Perry said. “There’s no incentive for insurance companies to pay less, and the system of health care delivery we have today demands the lack of transparency for it to work.” In a Dec. 10 report, the Senate Health and Human Services Committee said lawmakers should look into ways to increase “innovative, alternative” coverage options and consider requir- ing insurance providers to publicly list their prices. One more thing Texas is one of 10 states that have not expanded Medicaid, a state- and federally funded program that provides health coverage to certain low-in- come people. Texans can qualify for Medicaid based on a combination of factors, including income, household size, pregnancy or disability status and age. In states with expanded Medicaid, residents can qualify based on income alone, according to the federal government. About 750,000 Texans are in the “coverage gap,” according to policy nonprofit Texas 2036, meaning they make too much money to qualify for Medic- aid and too little to receive subsidized coverage through the federal health insurance marketplace. It would cost the state about $700 million per year to expand Medicaid, said Eva DeLuna Castro,
About 5 million Texans, or 16.4% of the state population, did not have health insurance in 2023, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Texas’ uninsured rate was higher than any other state and more than twice the national rate of 7.9% . “Texas leads the nation in a lot of good ways, but this is one of those things we don’t want to be leading the nation in,” said Annie Spilman, execu- tive director of Texans for Affordable Healthcare. The big picture For three years in a row, Texas health insurance premiums have increased by over 5% annually , according to the Texas Association of Health Plans, a trade association representing insurers. “The last several years, we’ve had the Legisla- ture adding a lot more requirements—what we call mandates—to health insurance that go above … the federal requirements,” said Blake Hutson, director of public affairs for the Texas Association of Health Plans. “Employers, who do provide the bulk of coverage in the state, are just increasingly facing higher and higher costs.” Texas has the third most health care mandates in the nation, according to Texans for Affordable Healthcare. Recent state mandates have limited the types of health coverage small businesses can offer, barred certain insurance providers from directing patients to mail-order pharmacies and more. Zooming in A lack of transparency is driving high health insurance costs, senators said during a May 14 hearing of the Texas Senate Health and Human
On average, Texas families pay $7,500 in annual employer-sponsored insurance premiums, while employers pay $15,000 per employee.
SOURCES: TEXICARE, TEXAS 2036/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Where to get help Uninsured Texans can visit 75 federally qualified health centers across 127 counties, which offer medical care regardless of insurance coverage or a patient’s ability to pay. Other options for people without health insurance include: Texas’ Primary Health Care Program Provides primary care services at clinics across the state Healthy Texas Women Offers free women’s health and family planning services The Texas HIV Medication Program Helps low-income Texans access medications to treat HIV and related complications
SOURCE: TEXAS HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES COMMISSION/ COMMUNITY IMPACT
a budget analyst in the office of Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin. Texas would also receive about $7 billion in federal Medicaid funding, DeLuna Castro estimated.
Now Open!
NOW OPEN
RiverSmilesNB.com Just off 306 near Gruene
Just o� 306 near Gruene RiverKidsNB.com
Kristen Self, DDS
25
NEW BRAUNFELS EDITION
Powered by FlippingBook