Texas women have a healthcare problem.
In 2017, Houston Public Media reported that 17 percent of Texas women live in poverty. In 2018, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that three in 10 Texas women are low-income, and almost one in five are uninsured. And, a survey from KFF found that half of Texas residents say it is a challenge for their family to afford healthcare. In Texas, the largest demographic living in poverty are females ages 25-34.
In 2011, the budget for family planning programs in Texas was cut by legislators, and in 2013, the state removed Planned Parenthood as a service provider, all of which likely contributed to the high number of women without healthcare access.
In 2016, the state created the Healthy Texas Women (HTW) program by consolidating previous Texas women’s health care programs as a way to provide health care and family planning services to low-income women in Texas.
This month, Gov. Abbott praised the Trump Administration for providing $350 million in federal funding for the Healthy Texas Women program. Gov. Abbott believes the waiver will provide a much-needed health resource to Texas women as is it administered through the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
Source: New Money Allocated for Healthy Texas Women—But Will It Be Enough? / Reform Austin