skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Monday, December 23, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Suspect held after woman set on fire in NY subway car dies; Trump threatens to take back Panama Canal over 'ridiculous' fees; A year of growth for juvenile diversion programs in SD; The ups and downs of combating rural grocery deserts in ND; Report: AZ one of eight Western states that could improve conservation policies.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Congress passes a last-minute budget stopgap. Trump's second-term tariffs could harm farmers, and future budget cuts could reduce much-needed federal programs.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rural folks could soon be shut out of loans for natural disasters if Project 2025 has its way, Taos, New Mexico weighs options for its housing shortage, and the top states providing America's Christmas trees revealed.

Texans: Paying for Health Care is Toughest Living Expense

play audio
Play

Tuesday, June 25, 2019   

HOUSTON — More than half of all Texans say they struggle on a daily basis to afford health care, according to a new survey. The findings come from the 2019 Texas Health Policy Survey from the Houston-based Episcopal Health Foundation.

Brian Sasser, chief communications officer with the foundation, said the poll illustrates a major health-care crisis in which even those Texans who carry health insurance, because of high deductibles and copayments, are having trouble accessing and affording care.

"Texans are telling us that health care is now the toughest living expense to afford. That includes other than rent, mortgage and monthly utilities and transportation costs, even food,” Sasser said. “That's kind of a stark reminder of the crisis in Texas."

Sasser said faced with costs they can't afford, 60% of Texans said they or someone in their household skipped or postponed health-care needs. He said those surveyed reported they sometimes skipped dental care or checkups, postponed needed medical care, skipped a test or treatment, didn't fill a prescription, or cut pills in half or skipped doses. He added that many people reported problems getting mental-health care.

Sasser said the survey found, not surprisingly, low-income Texans are hit the hardest.

"If you have health insurance and you have a stable job, cost is tough already,” he said. “And if you don't have health insurance, you don't have a stable job, you are low income, it just compounds the fact that not only is health care hard to afford, but it's hard to access that care without insurance."

Sasser said Texas lawmakers had numerous opportunities during the recent legislative session to take steps toward resolving the problem, such as expanding Medicaid coverage or funding a statewide health plan. But the body failed to improve care.

"Our polls are telling us two things: One, that they're having trouble affording and accessing health care; and that, two, the state has a big role in helping solve that problem,” Sasser said. “And so far, not much has been done to address it."

The Episcopal Health Foundation serves 11 million Texans in a 57-county area in the southeast part of the state.

Disclosure: Episcopal Health Foundation contributes to our fund for reporting on Health Issues, Mental Health, Philanthropy, Poverty Issues. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
Rocky Casillas Aguirre adds a pop of color to 'Twitch the Flame,' a main character in his comic series which focuses on mental health for kids. (Photo courtesy of Casillas Aguirre)

Health and Wellness

play sound

By Amy Felegy for Arts Midwest.Broadcast version by Mike Moen for Minnesota News Connection reporting for the Arts Midwest-Public News Service Collabo…


Health and Wellness

play sound

With Christmas less than a week away, experts are giving advice on how seniors and the community can fight against social isolation. A United Health …

Environment

play sound

When the Champlain Towers South collapsed in Surfside in 2021 taking 98 lives, it sent shock waves across South Florida. The tragedy has left …


Environment

play sound

Three environmental nonprofits filed suit Wednesday against the California Air Resources Board to oppose the expansion of a program allowing oil and g…

Ithaca, New York, is the first city in the world to commit to electrifying all its buildings. The city is aiming to accomplish the goal by 2030. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

New York lawmakers are focusing on electrifying municipal buildings. Buildings statewide make up 32% of New York's greenhouse gas emissions and …

Social Issues

play sound

North Dakota is expected to rejoin the debate over whether all school children, regardless of their family income, should have access to no-cost …

Social Issues

play sound

This month, an Arizona grand jury indicted two out-of-state residents for cheating the state's Empowerment Scholarship Account program out of more …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021