I came across this ProPublica article on my Explorer homepage. It is worth the read and details the various medical issues facing those in Texas with regards to poor care and access, especially to women, and gives personal stories illustrating these points.
Some points (all cited from the article) so this posting is not just an article link:
1) 1 in 6 Texans had no health insurance last year, which is almost 1/6 of all uninsured Americans and more than the entire population of Louisiana
2) ProPublica and Vox spent 8 months going through data and talking with patients and providers to get the real story on medical care in Texas. To quote the article: “The picture that emerges is of a system of staggering complexity, riddled with obstacles and cracks, that prioritizes babies over mothers, thwarts women at every turn, frustrates doctors and midwives, and incentivizes substandard care.”
3) The proportion of late-post partum deaths in Texas is close to 40% with black women bearing the greatest risk.
4) People without children or disabilities pretty much can’t receive Medicaid in Texas, no matter how poor they are. A single mother of 2 working 11 hours a week at minimum wage would make too much to qualify. However, if you get pregnant, the income threshold goes from 17% of the federal poverty rate to 198%. Basically that is saying that a nonpregnant women is worth 91% less than a pregnant one. And she would only get coverage until 2 months postpartum. Texans also bear the highest cost burden in the US for insurance.
5) Texas has the worst first trimester prenatal care in the country, thus increasing risk for prenatal complications, preterm labor, and maternal complications. The Texas Medicaid application form is 16 times longer than a 1040 tax form!
6) A lack of treatment of chronic conditions are increasing over acute complications as the most likely causes of maternal death.
7) Texas’ prenatal care program for noncitizens does not cover the mother, only the fetus she carries (thanks W who put fetuses under CHIP). This ignores critical aspects of the mother’s care and treats her only like a vessel. For example, labor that doesn’t result in a delivery is not covered. Non-obstetric issues such as an infected tooth that could lead to sepsis is also not covered. Postpartum visits/care also are not covered under CHIP Perinate.
8) What does the GOP say about this? “The state’s alarming maternal mortality numbers were, as she said, “kind of a hoax” and that increasing benefits for new mothers was just a stealth tactic aimed at expanding Medicaid more widely”. “Medicaid expansion — that’s like a four letter word [here],” Rep. Sarah Davis said. For a lot of Republicans who dominate the Statehouse, women’s health issues trigger a similar reaction, she added: “Women’s health has become so synonymous with Planned Parenthood, that in an effort to sort of punish Planned Parenthood, women in general get punished.”
This article talks about a number of issues that have been raised by other DK articles. But if the personal stories in this article don’t make you cry by the end, you either have no heart or are a Republican. I guess saying that is redundant though...