children's health

Health care is the largest and fastest growing industry in Texas — but the workforce isn't growing fast enough to meet increasing demand. Workforce shortages are getting worse, according to testimony from state officials during a House Committee on Public Health hearing.

A new report shows Texas leading the country in its rate of uninsured children under 6.

From a West Texas measles outbreak to rising vaccine exemptions statewide, families of immunocompromised children depend on herd immunity, which is slowly eroding.

“These are not just abstract numbers. These are Kansas kids losing access to food,” said Haley Kottler, senior campaign director at Kansas Appleseed.

The Texas Legislature at least partially implemented less than a third of recommendations from the state's 2024 Children's Behavioral Health Strategic Plan, according to a recent report. Many of the recommendations focus on increasing access to services that keep children in their homes or communities instead of institutional settings.

Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital Dr. Peter Hotez shares his thoughts on changes to the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule. He also offers advice on where parents can go for credible guidance on whether and when to get their children vaccinated.

About 1 million Texans with ACA health plans are over the age of 45, and many of them will pay monthly premiums that are more than $1,000.

Enrollment in Affordable Care Act marketplace health insurance plans begins Nov. 1. But questions about whether Congress will extend tax credits that bring down the cost of plans for many Americans linger.

Texas officials say food stamp benefits, which go to 1.7 million children, would not be distributed in November under an extended shutdown.

More than a million low-income mothers and children in the Midwest and Great Plains rely on a national food assistance program. The Trump administration says it will help provide temporary funding to keep the program afloat, but food advocates say it's a short-term fix.