Texas Program for Chronically Ill, Disabled Children Could Face $5.9M Shortfall This Year, Cuts from State

Because of a budget shortfall and a waiting list, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission is proposing cutbacks in services for chronically ill and disabled children enrolled in the Children with Special Health Needs program, the Houston Chronicle reports. The program provides services for 5,019 individuals, including some adults with cystic fibrosis, but most of the beneficiaries are children in families with annual incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid or the CHIP program. The program could have a $5.9 million budget gap by the end of the year, and the lack of funds has led to a waiting list of 298 children, the Chronicle reports. The budget shortfall was caused by "miscalculations, faulty assumptions and unpredictable need," Debra Stabeno, deputy commissioner for programs at the state Department of Health, said. To cover the program's budget shortfall, the state Health and Human Services Commission is considering 18 "cost-saving" measures, including ending "support services" such as respite care and "narrowing the definition" of which illnesses qualify for benefits. The agency also is considering reducing administrative costs by cutting jobs and salaries. If all the agency's recommendations are implemented, the program would save $5.6 million this year and $8.1 million next year, according to a study the agency completed last month. However, some of the recommendations run counter to a 1999 law that "broadened" the program's eligibility to all children with chronic diseases. State Rep. Glenn Maxey (D) said, "I'm very hesitant about anything that says we're going to back off [the 1999 law]. I would much rather have kids on waiting lists than to have kids categorically denied because of their" illnesses (Hughes, Houston Chronicle, 1/22).