Texas Physicians Ask Lawmakers to Fund Medicaid, Medical Education, Disease Prevention, Women’s Health, and Mental Health
April 29, 2015
Seven of Texas’ largest physician organizations — representing
more than 48,000 physicians and medical students — today urged state House and
Senate budget negotiators to “craft a cost-effective budget that addresses Texas' significant health care needs.”
“Our organizations understand that in the coming weeks you
will be faced with myriad and often competing requests to approve one budget item
over another,” the groups wrote in a joint
letter to senators and representatives who are hammering out the details of
the state’s 2016-17 spending plan. “Tough choices will be required to fashion a
budget that meets the health, educational, and safety needs of our diverse and
burgeoning state.
“Of primary importance to physicians is ensuring our
patients have access to effective, timely, and high-quality health care — the
same goals we know you share. Adoption of the recommendations below will help
Texas achieve these mutual goals. They will also ensure Texas remains an
economically prosperous and competitive place to do business by:
- Ensuring low-income Texans have timely, reliable
access to primary care physicians within their communities;
- Promoting a robust physician workforce to meet
Texas’ diverse and growing population;
- Strengthening the state’s public health system
to ensure early detection of potential disease outbreaks and to better manage
costly chronic diseases, such as asthma and diabetes;
- Fostering early intervention and treatment of
mental illness; and
- Providing preventive health and wellness
services to low-income women.”
The organizations submitting their recommendations for a
healthy Texas are the:
- Texas Medical Association;
- Texas Pediatric Society;
- Texas Academy of Family Physicians;
- Texas Chapter of the American College of
Physicians Services;
- American Congress of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists, Texas Chapter;
- Texas Association of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists; and
- Federation of Texas Psychiatry.
A copy of the detailed,
five-page letter to the members of the House-Senate Conference Committee on
House Bill 1 is available on the Texas Medical Association website.
TMA is the largest state medical
society in the nation, representing more than 48,000 physician and medical
student members. It is located in Austin and has 110 component county medical
societies around the state. TMA’s key objective since 1853 is to improve the
health of all Texans.
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Contact: Steve Levine (512) 370-1380; cell: (512) 750-0971; email: steve.levine[at]texmed[dot]org
Brent Annear (512) 370-1381;
cell: (512) 656-7320; email: brent.annear[at]texmed[dot]org
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Last Updated On
March 20, 2018
Originally Published On
April 29, 2015