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Governor Vetoes Bill Gutting Medical Board - 06/30/2025

The full force of TMA advocacy came to bear in the veto of Senate Bill 268, which would have eviscerated an important Texas Medical Board function: halting the unlicensed practice of medicine by health professionals licensed by another Texas agency.

Contaminant Containment: Countering Foodborne Illness Outbreaks Takes Physician Awareness and Prompt Reporting - 06/26/2025

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates each year some 48 million people get sick from a foodborne illness, more than 127,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die.

TMA Grants Build Community Connections for Underserved Patients - 06/24/2025

Applications are open through Aug. 22 for Vaccines Defend What Matters local impact grants. The $3,500 grants, funded by the TMA Foundation, can be used to vaccinate underserved and uninsured populations and toward outreach initiatives that address vaccine hesitancy. Read more.

'The Canary in the Coal Mine': Wastewater Testing Advances Improve Physician and Public Readiness for Outbreaks - 06/23/2025

Houston is home to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Wastewater Surveillance System of Excellence.

The Essence of Outreach: TMA Health Beat Broadens Its Audience to Advocate More Effectively for Physicians - 06/23/2025

Louise Bethea, MD, sometimes encounters resistance in persuading her patients with asthma to adhere to their daily medication regimen. It’s a problem she attributes, in part, to low health care literacy.

U.S., Texas Child Flu Deaths Increase Amid a Grim Season - 06/04/2025

Texas has recorded 15 pediatric flu deaths so far for the 2024-2025 flu season. That number is significantly higher than last year, when no child deaths associated with flu occurred in the state. Physicians continue to advocate immunization as the best defense.

TMA’s First 2025 Legislative Victory Protects Sensitive Test Results - 05/23/2025

Gov. Greg Abbott signed TMA’s first victory of the 2025 legislative session to allow physicians a way to communicate to their patients receive serious or sensitive test results in a supportive manner rather than via electronic patient portals. Texas physicians will still need to comply with information blocking provisions after the three-day pause.

Apply for Local Impact Grants to Provide Free Immunizations in Your Community - 05/15/2025

Applications are open for TMA Foundation grants of up to $3,500 to support vaccine provision and education. The deadline to apply for the current cycle of grants is May 23, and the funds can be put to use in a variety of ways to serve your community.  

Insurance Bill Undermining Patient, Physician Protections Heads to House - 05/13/2025

A top target for TMA, House Bill 139 would create a new “employer choice of benefit” health plan exempt from decades’ worth of insurance laws that promise a minimum set of coverage, prompt pay, prior authorization restraints, and other guardrails. Other bad bills with serious consequences for practices also top TMA’s opposition list.

Physicians Combat Bad Bills at TMA’s Final First Tuesdays at the Capitol - 05/07/2025

Champion of medicine Sen. Donna Campbell, MD, thanked Texas physicians for rallying against harmful legislation – like those that could expand scope of practice. Also on TMA’s chopping block: bills that let health plans go unchecked and weaken vaccine access.

‘If That’s Not Expanding Scope, I Don’t Know What Is’: Bill Grants Scope Shortcut to Rural APRNs - 05/06/2025

With patient safety on the line, TMA physicians showed up in droves in opposition to Senate Bill 3055, which would give certain nurse practitioners independent practice in rural areas. Instead, physicians turned lawmakers’ attention to a new and immediate solution to Texas’ rural access shortages advancing through the legislature: Senate Bill 2695.

Whooping Cough Spikes in Texas Among Measles Outbreak - 04/30/2025

The Texas Department of State Health Services so far has reported 1,060 cases of pertussis, or whooping cough, outpacing the rate seen in 2024. Tdap and DTaP immunizations are crucial, including for pregnant mothers.

Whooping Cough Cases Far Outpacing Last Year’s as Measles Illnesses Continue to Spread - 04/30/2025

Amid the worst measles outbreak Texas has seen in over 30 years; pertussis cases are spiking as well. Through mid-April, 1,060 cases of pertussis occurred in the state, while 1,928 cases were reported in all of 2024, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.

Rural-Access Solution Goes Before Senate Committee - 04/28/2025

The culmination of many months and meetings, TMA-backed Senate Bill 2695 was unveiled to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, opening a new pipeline for rural access to care while preserving Texas’ physician-led care model.

‘Who Writes the Rules Matters’: Medical Students Converge on Capitol to Educate and Advocate - 04/24/2025

As First Tuesdays continues its run in the second half of session, physicians and medical students bring their thoughts, stories, and concerns to lawmakers to shed light on TMA priorities, including scope of practice and physician workforce measures.

Medical Education, Medicaid Get Budget Boosts as Final Deliberations Begin - 04/23/2025

Medicaid, women’s health, and medical education are all winners so far, all topping TMA priorities this session as part of the overarching goal to boost access to care. With a handful of weeks to go in the session and another key deadline approaching, medicine is still working hard to ensure budget wins stay permanent.

TMA’s Top Legislative Priorities: Enhance Medicaid Payments and Coverage - 04/17/2025

TMA will work to enhance Medicaid payments and coverage this legislative session

Medicine Whelms Nurse Scope Expansion Bill - 04/15/2025

Physicians from across the state made the trek to the Capitol to testify that House Bill 3974 would dismantle Texas’ longstanding physician-led care model and with it, patient safety. TMA and the legislature remain committed to quality solutions to the state’s access-to-care challenges.

TMA Grants to Help Your Practice Improve Local Vaccination Rates - 04/14/2025

Apply for a grant. Vaccines Defend What Matters (formerly Be Wise – Immunize) is TMA’s integrated, multimedia public health education and advocacy effort to overcome vaccine hesitancy and increase vaccination rates in Texas. 

TMA Mobilizes Against Nurse Scope Expansion Bill - 04/11/2025

House Bill 3794 is among dozens of bills filed this session that chip away at Texas’ scope of practice laws. While for the most part TMA has stopped such bills in their tracks, by contrast, HB 3794 would open what TMA President G. Ray Callas, MD, strongly warned is a “floodgate” for independent practice by advanced practice registered nurses. TMA urges physicians to act to stop the bill.

Understanding Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) - 04/09/2025

The impact of adverse childhood events (ACEs) can be lasting and costly on patient health and medical outcomes. In the United States, more than 20% of adults report experiencing three ACEs during their youth, potentially increasing the risk of negative, chronic health consequences and challenges such as alcoholism, depression, unemployment, heart disease and substance abuse, among many others.

TMA Calls for Increased Funding to Help TMB Address Workforce Issues - 04/09/2025

TMA President G. Ray Callas, MD, advocated for Texas Medical Board (TMB) funding, citing record numbers of physician license applications. Plus, learn the Texas House committee assignments that may influence medicine’s legislative agenda. Read more.

E-Cigarette Regulation Heard in Senate, House Committees - 04/07/2025

TMA testified to regulate e-cigarettes just as traditional tobacco products, with protections for children and youth. TMA is also tracking numerous women’s health and insurance bills on the move.

Division of Population Health and Medical Education - 04/03/2025

The Division of Population Health and Medical Education focuses on public health, scientific, and patient safety issues throughout the state, emphasizing areas in which high-quality medical care and scientific expertise can benefit all Texans. In addition the division maintains close relationships with academic medicine and monitors physician workforce trends.

First Tuesdays at the Capitol Lets Legislators Hear What Matters Most to Medicine - 04/02/2025

Since 2003, TMA member physicians, medical students, and TMA Alliance members have told their stories to legislators via First Tuesdays at the Capitol. Advocates for medicine have two more opportunities this session to share their views.