Texas fell nine spots – from 37th in 2007 to 46th – in the 2008 ranking of the healthiest states by the United Health Foundation.
The good news:
The bad news:
The state's best and worst category rankings:
See the United Health Foundation's latest findings on Texas.
Texas Health Insurance Risk Pool
1-888-398-3927
Risk pools are state-sponsored programs to help people with a history of medical problems in their family to purchase coverage. These pools are for people who can afford to buy health insurance, but are not able to get underwritten in the private market because of a pre-existing health condition. These programs can vary significantly from state-to-state in price, benefits and number of people served. Often insurance companies doing business in the state are required to contribute to the poolto keep it in the black. In the best cases they allow people to be able to switch jobs or become self-employed without the fear of losing their health insurance coverage. Find more on risk pools here.
An option for the medically uninsurable is a guaranteed-issue mini-med health insurance plan. There is no underwriting and no health questions are asked.
These plans provide basic coverage but are not designed to help with catastrophic expenses. They can often count as creditable coverage, eliminating the waiting period for pre-existing conditions if you later move to an employer-based plan. Read more here.
Cover The Uninsured is a national effort to highlight the fact that too many Americans are living without health insurance and to demand solutions from our nation's leaders. Read more information on its efforts. It is a project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
US News does an annual ranking of what it considers the best health insurance plans in each state.
Visit its reports on various health insurance or medical insurance plans being offered in Texas.
Texas Department of Insurance -- the health care section of the Department's Web site, with consumer information and more.
Texas Children's Health Insurance Program -- state families with uninsured children may be eligible for health coverage through Medicaid and the Texas CHIP. Includes regular checkups and dental care.
Texas Medicaid Program -- the State and Federal cooperative venture that provides medical coverage to eligible needy persons.
Health Care for All Texas -- one out of four people in Texas is uninsured -- the worst in the nation. This group is promoting univeral health care for all Texans, and has a resolution for a ballot initiative on the 2008 Democratic primary in March.
Health Care For All Texas – is a grassroots coalition that believes health care is a human right and that every person in the state of Texas deserves access to high-quality health care at an affordable cost.
San Antonio Healthcare-Now Coalition, – an affiliate of the national Healthcare-Now organization, works to achieve universal access to affordable healthcare.
Austin Business Journal – The Texas Hospital Association and the National Federation of Independent Business Leaders are pushing state lawmakers to increase health care accessibility in Texas.
Health Insurance Resource Center BLOG – They say everything is bigger in Texas, and sadly, they’re dead-on when it comes to this depressing statistic: that no other state in the nation has a larger percentage of residents who don’t have health insurance. According to the United Health Foundation’s 2008 report, America’s Health Rankings, 24.9 percent [...]
Contact your federal officials. President Obama needs your help to push Congress to make health insurance available, affordable and universal! Read more!
Texas Governor Rick Perry
P.O. Box 12428
Austin, Texas 78711-2428
PHONE: (512) 463-2000
FAX: (512) 463-1849
Contact by e-mail
Contact your Texas State Senator
Contact your Texas State Representative
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