Texas Officials To Study Feasibility of 13-County Public Health Care System
Harris County, Texas, officials will study whether to create a single public health care system to cover 13 counties in Southeast Texas, the Houston Chronicle reports. Such a regional system would "spread the tax burden" for indigent care and could save funds by allocating resources where they are needed most, according to Harris County Commissioner Steve Radack. He added that a "regional approach" to health care could attract more paying patients to public hospitals by "weaken[ing] the stigma attached" to the facilities and could allow more legislators to work for additional state and federal funding for the system because it would cover "such a large area." Due to the "daunting" logistics of merging local systems, however, Radack has requested that county officials complete a feasibility study. Before health systems could be combined, county officials would need to "reconcile" differences, the Chronicle reports. For example, some counties have independent hospital districts, while others operate hospitals and clinics directly, and others contract with private providers for services.
Other Questions
Questions also remain about who would operate a regional system, how each county would be represented, how funds would be distributed and whether or not smaller counties would be willing to "pony up" more money for a larger system. In addition, the plan's success may depend on the support of private health care providers, which would compete with a regional system. Despite the "political and financial land mines" facing a potential regional system, Radack said, "This deserves study. ... We've been working with a system that's been patched up and patched up. It's time to take a broader conservative approach." The Chronicle reports the idea has "stirred local interest" in Harris County but received "mixed reviews" from officials in more rural areas (Brewer, Houston Chronicle, 12/28).
