Tag Archives: hospitals

I do not expect any aspect of the rural health care problem to be addressed by the Lege

Posted on December 6, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry, I just don’t see it happening. Twenty five years ago, the Texas Legislature passed a sweeping set of reforms to resuscitate the state’s collapsing rural health care system. Now, health care providers, advocates and local leaders are proposing similarly … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS leaves Texas anti-EMTALA ruling in place

Posted on October 8, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Another reminder of what the stakes are this election, in case you needed it. The Supreme Court on Monday refused to require doctors in Texas to perform certain emergency abortions when the procedure would conflict with the state’s strict abortion … Continue reading →

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The leaked EMTALA draft is not a victory

Posted on June 27, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This hit the internet like a thunderstorm yesterday. The US Supreme Court is poised to allow abortions in medical emergencies in Idaho, according to a copy of an opinion that was briefly posted on the court’s website. The decision would … Continue reading →

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Texas Medical Board publishes its useless abortion guidance

Posted on June 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

You already know how I feel about this. The Texas Medical Board on Friday adopted guidance for how doctors should interpret the state’s new abortion laws, reducing paperwork requirements some saw as overly burdensome but declining to provide a list … Continue reading →

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SCOTx upholds abortion ban in Zurawski lawsuit

Posted on June 1, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know if the Supreme Court intended to bury the news of this stinker of a ruling on a Friday, but boy howdy if that was their intent did they ever pick the right Friday to do it on. … Continue reading →

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Of course no one likes the Texas Medical Board’s proposed abortion guidance

Posted on May 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This was never a viable path forward. It was and is doomed to fail. When Sarah Harrison addressed the Texas Medical Board at a virtual hearing Monday, she added her name to the growing list of Texas women who have … Continue reading →

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Texas Medical Board’s abortion guidance is a mess

Posted on April 27, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Doctors who perform life-saving abortions may soon be required to document whether they first tried to transfer the patient to another facility to avoid terminating the pregnancy, a move some say goes … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS hears the EMTALA case

Posted on April 25, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst. The Supreme Court appeared split Wednesday in a case over whether a federal law requiring hospitals to provide appropriate stabilizing medical treatment for patients could in some cases overrule a … Continue reading →

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Texas Medical Board issues some guidance on abortion exceptions

Posted on March 23, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Sort of. The Texas Medical Board proposed a broad definition for what constitutes an emergency medical exception under the state’s otherwise strict abortion ban at its meeting Friday, disappointing some abortion rights advocates who were seeking a specific list of … Continue reading →

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Texas Medical Board may issue guidance on abortion exceptions

Posted on March 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I trust you will forgive my skepticism about this. The Texas Medical Board will consider language to clarify what qualifies as a medical exception to the state’s abortion laws at an upcoming March 22 board meeting. The meeting agenda was … Continue reading →

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Texas Medical Board asked to clarify abortion exceptions

Posted on January 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

If the Supreme Court won’t do it, then what else is there? Two attorneys have asked the Texas Medical Board to clarify what qualifies as a medical exception to the state’s abortion laws, following the Texas Supreme Court’s rejection last … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS to hear Idaho EMTALA appeal

Posted on January 7, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This does sound ominous. The Supreme Court announced Friday that it would take up a case centered on abortion care in emergency medical situations, leapfrogging the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which was scheduled to hear arguments later this month. … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit rules EMTALA doesn’t apply to abortions

Posted on January 4, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

A typically crappy ruling from our least favorite appeals court. Federal regulations do not require emergency rooms to perform life-saving abortions if it would run afoul of state law, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday. After the overturn of Roe … Continue reading →

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The Texas Medical Board can’t do anything about abortion

Posted on December 19, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sorry, but this is a complete waste of time, and everybody involved knows it. In its ruling this week denying a Dallas woman’s petition for an emergency abortion, the Texas Supreme Court said it was the responsibility of physicians … Continue reading →

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Kate Cox leaves Texas to get her abortion

Posted on December 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

My heart goes out to her and her family. After the Texas Supreme Court temporarily put a pregnant woman’s efforts to get an emergency abortion on hold, her lawyers said Monday that she had left Texas to get care in … Continue reading →

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Paxton asks SCOTx to stop the emergency abortion

Posted on December 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Welp. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has asked the state Supreme Court to intervene and stop a Dallas woman from having an abortion. Paxton’s office petitioned the high court just before midnight Thursday, after a Travis County district judge granted … Continue reading →

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Emergency abortion approval granted

Posted on December 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good, with the obvious proviso that no one should ever have to go through this. For the first time in at least 50 years, a judge has intervened to allow an adult woman to terminate her pregnancy. When Travis County … Continue reading →

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Texas woman seeks emergency abortion approval

Posted on December 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Boy howdy is this a big ol’ can of worms. A Texas woman is asking a judge to allow her to get an emergency abortion after learning that her baby has a rare and typically fatal condition. The first-of-its-kind lawsuit, … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: 2023 Harris Health proposition

Posted on December 2, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

PREVIOUSLY: Mayor’s race Controller’s race The nice thing about analyzing Harris County Proposition A is that I can use the precinct/district guide I got and used for the 2022 election, which is nice and clean and gives me totals that … Continue reading →

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SCOTx has its abortion case hearing

Posted on November 29, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. The Supreme Court of Texas heard arguments Tuesday in a landmark case that could impact how the state’s abortion laws apply to medically complicated pregnancies. In August, state District Judge Jessica Mangrum ruled that the near-total abortion … Continue reading →

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Idaho appeals EMTALA injunction to SCOTUS

Posted on November 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Brace yourselves. Idaho asked the Supreme Court Monday to stay a lower court injunction, or to take up its case directly, as it attempts to fend off the Biden administration’s challenge of the state’s abortion ban. The government filed suit … Continue reading →

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The business brief against the state abortion ban

Posted on November 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Would like to see a lot more co-signers on this. Forty Texas companies and business leaders are entering the fight against Texas’ abortion ban, filing a brief with the Texas Supreme Court that argues the “ambiguity” in the law’s medical … Continue reading →

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More plaintiffs in the lawsuit to allow exemptions to Texas’ super strict anti-abortion law

Posted on November 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

SCOTx will take up that appeal soon. When Kimberly Manzano’s doctor first noticed some irregularities with her pregnancy, she turned to God, praying constantly for good news. When the diagnosis worsened, she and her husband sought comfort in the Bible’s … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit hears EMTALA appeal

Posted on November 10, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Keep your expectations very low. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments Tuesday about whether the federal government can require Texas hospitals to perform life-saving abortions, despite the state’s near-total ban on the procedure. After the overturn of … Continue reading →

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UH-Hobby Center poll: Whitmire 34, Jackson Lee 31

Posted on October 11, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Same pollster as before, nearly the same result. There has been almost no movement in Houston’s mayoral race over the last three months, with state Sen. John Whitmire and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee still firmly entrenched atop the crowded … Continue reading →

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Lots of people will not get that latest COVID shot

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Sadly not a big surprise. We could move this at the margins, but not as long as any part of government is in Republican control. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends new covid-19 booster vaccines for all — … Continue reading →

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Time for your next COVID shot

Posted on September 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m ready. The U.S. approved updated COVID-19 vaccines Monday, hoping to rev up protection against the latest coronavirus strains and blunt any surge this fall and winter. The Food and Drug Administration decision opens the newest shots from Moderna and … Continue reading →

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Harris Health bond officially on the ballot

Posted on August 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County voters will be asked to approve a $2.5 billion bond issue from the Harris Health System to fund the rebuilding and upgrading of several hospital district facilities, including an expansion of Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital. Harris County … Continue reading →

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It’s going to be a challenge tracking changes in the maternal mortality rate

Posted on August 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We expect maternal deaths to rise post-Dobbs, especially in states that have effectively banned abortions. But collecting the data to document what’s happening will not be easy. Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, doctors have warned … Continue reading →

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Harris Health moves closer to a bond issue

Posted on August 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Almost certainly coming soon to a ballot near you. Harris County Commissioners on Tuesday briefly discussed a $2.5 billion bond proposal from the Harris Health System to fund the rebuilding and upgrading of several hospital district facilities, including the replacement … Continue reading →

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Judge grants order allowing exemptions to anti-abortion laws

Posted on August 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Some late Friday breaking news. A Texas judge on Friday issued a temporary exemption to the state’s abortion ban that would allow women with complicated pregnancies to obtain the procedure and keep doctors free from prosecution if they determined the … Continue reading →

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Yeah, COVID’s on the rise again

Posted on August 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We’re in a much better place overall now, but do exercise caution and get your damn shots if you haven’t already. COVID-19 isn’t going anywhere. Infections are rising in Texas and Houston for the fourth summer in a row, with many … Continue reading →

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“Parental rights” for me but not for thee

Posted on July 25, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

That’s what the anti-trans ban on gender-affirming care is all about. Gov. Greg Abbott and state lawmakers have used variations of the phrase “parental rights” this year to push a litany of legislation, with varying degrees of success. They’ve vowed to empower Texas … Continue reading →

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Hearing in the lawsuit to clarify exceptions to Texas’s harsh anti-abortion law

Posted on July 20, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s hoping for some good news. One woman could barely get words out through her tears. Another ran to the restroom as soon as she was done, wordless, wretched sobs wracking her tiny body. A third threw up on the … Continue reading →

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