A March 24th article in the Austin American-Statesman[1] provides information on the proposed Texas Senate state budget. The article aims to highlight the fact that a Senate panel recommended adding $4.5 billion to health care spending.
One of the foremost concerns for health care advocates had been the proposed 10% cut to service provider reimbursements. Such a drastic cut would surely have meant widespread refusal to treat Medicaid and CHIP patients. The subcommittee, however, recommended 1% cuts for doctors and 3% for dentists and hospitals.
The Medicaid Subcommittee’s recommendations would benefit both foster parents and CPS caseworkers. Health care providers are already limited, and therefore more difficult for foster parents to access for children in their care. But health care is not the only improvement for this population. The subcommittee’s proposal also recommended adding and additional 150 CPS workers instead of cutting 355. It would also restore all planned cuts to foster care providers.
These last two recommendations are essential to the child welfare system. More workers could possibly mean fewer overburdened caseworkers and a slight drop in turnover. As previously discussed in this blog, cuts to foster care providers would make recruitment and placement more difficult. (See my posts A Return to the Dark Days and Putting Families on the Chopping Block for an overview of what could happen if these cuts go through.)
The problem still remains, though, of exactly where the funding for these recommendations will come from. The article notes that there are some funds that will be avialble, but that they are already earmarked for needs such as public education.
Although we’re still waiting for the final word on the Senate budget, the recommendations made by the subcommittee would be a great victory for child welfare advocates. At the very least, the recommendations demonstrate that the needs of the child welfare system are starting to be recognized.
Jennifer Copeland
MSSW Candidate
[1] Lindell, C. (2011). Senate budget gets dose of health care funds. American-Statesman. Retrieved from http://www.statesman.com/news/texas-politics/senate-budget-gets-dose-of-health-care-funds-1347605.html?cxtype=rss_ece_frontpage
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