Surrounded by patient advocates and survivors, states Sen. César Blanco announced his latest offering, the Healthcare Expanded and Accessed Locally for Texans Act ‒ also known as the HEAL Texas Act ‒ during a news conference in Austin.
Blanco’s SB 1700 seeks to expand access to health care in rural and underserved parts of the state by clearing barriers currently in place to allow advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) to provide primary care services. Texas is one of only a handful of states that prohibits APRNs from providing primary care without a doctor’s oversight.
“We need an all-hands on deck approach to dealing with our current health care access and workforce crisis,” Blanco, D-El Paso, said in a statement after announcing the legislation Tuesday. “In the twenty-six states that have removed these barriers on nurse practitioners, they have reported improved access to care, more options in the health care market, more affordable health care, better health care outcomes, and a more efficient health care system for all patients.”
According to numbers from Blanco’s office, there are currently 437 Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) across Texas, representing areas where there are not enough physicians to keep up with the growing population.
In fact, only 8% of physicians are entering primary care compared to more than 72% of nurse practitioners, who are also more likely to work in rural or underserved areas.
“If you live in one of the state’s many underserved counties and need care, you have only two options: a long trip to find a provider or go without care,” Blanco said in his statement. “Texas can and must do better. The HEAL Texans Act will eliminate barriers to care, expand local options across the state, particularly in rural and underserved communities, and most importantly, put patients first.”
With nurse practitioners already serving many of these populations, Blanco’s bill would clear the way for them to more directly care for their patients without the strict oversight rules currently in place.
“Nurse practitioners would continue practicing the same way they have done, just without the administrative and financial barriers that are hampering their ability to provide care to people where they need it the most,” he continued. “The HEAL Texans Act will give Texans access and options to the quality health care they deserve.”
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Rob Schneider of AARP Texas was on hand for Tuesday’s news conference and offered the organization’s wholehearted support for the measure, noting that the issue is especially important for the state’s senior and elderly population.
Schneider said the bill contained “safe and smart solutions” to protect the “well-being and dignity” of Texans older than 50, who currently make up nearly 30% of the state’s workforce.
“This is not about doctors, this is not about nurses,” Blanco said during the news conference. “This is about patient access, number one.”
And Blanco is confident that the issue can clear the Republican-dominated Texas Legislature ‒ he noted that state senators from both sides of the aisle have heard from constituents suffering because of a lack of health care options and guaranteed that House members are hearing the same.
“This is not a partisan issue,” he said. “This is an access to health care issue.”
Later in the day, Blanco’s office issued a public apology to the families, patients and advocates who were on hand for the news conference, chiding the Texas Medical Association for disrupting the news conference.
In the apology, Blanco wrote: “Today’s press conference with rural patients and families, kids, senior citizens, AARP, and mental health advocates, was supposed to be about bold solutions to provide more health care access and options to Texans. Unfortunately, members of the powerful Texas Medical Association showed up to disrupt the press conference to defend the status-quo of limited access to care and doctors’ lucrative delegation contracts.”
“There will be a time and place to debate the merits of the HEAL Texans Act, but disrupting a patient-oriented press conference was not the place and it was disrespectful to the patients and health care advocates,” Blanco’s apology continued. “I’ m disappointed and sad with TMA’s tactics. Those patients and advocates traveled hundreds of miles to be here to support legislation that will improve their access and options for critical health care. While TMA has privately apologized to our office, TMA’s apology should be directed to the patients and health care advocates who came to tell their stories.”
This article originally appeared on the El Paso Times: Blanco announces HEAL Texans Act for expanded rural health care access