AUSTIN, Texas — Rural hospitals remain a focus for Texas lawmakers as the Texas House Public Health Committee reviews the implementation of major health care legislation passed during the last legislative session.

According to the Texas Hospital Association, Texas is home to 147 rural hospitals that serve a larger share of older and sicker patients, as well as more Medicaid and Medicare recipients, than hospitals in metropolitan areas. Those demographics create significant challenges for health care providers in rural communities.

The association reports that 21 rural hospitals have closed over the past decade. Other facilities have eliminated services, including labor and delivery departments, leaving some pregnant women in rural Texas hours away from birth care.

One measure aimed at addressing those concerns is House Bill 18, which provides additional financial support for rural maternity care. The legislation increases payments associated with childbirth services in rural hospitals.

“That rural hospital is also going to get a $1500 payment. I mean, they’re going to get the regular reimbursement rate associated with providing those services, but because it’s also a delivery in a rural hospital, they’re going to also get an extra 15-hundred dollars,” a witness told lawmakers.

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Only 40 percent of rural hospitals continue to provide labor and delivery services. House Bill 18 was among several bills approved to strengthen the availability and quality of health care across rural Texas, which covers approximately 85 percent of the state’s land mass.

Committee members also heard testimony on efforts to expand telehealth access and recruit health care workers to rural communities. Witnesses highlighted partnerships between hospitals, clinics, and academic institutions for training and residency programs, as well as loan forgiveness programs designed to encourage clinicians to practice in rural areas.

Lawmakers also discussed broadband access and its role in telehealth services. Testimony indicated that many rural Texans continue to rely on libraries and senior centers to access telehealth resources because broadband service remains limited in some areas.

Emo’s in Austin is on the move again. 

After more than a decade at 2015 E. Riverside Drive (following the original Red River-era venue closing in 2011), Emo’s current Riverside space will be taken over by AEG Presents when the lease ends later this year. The Los Angeles, CA-based company will assume operations in January 2027 and plans to reopen the building under a new name in early 2027 following upgrades, renovations and a full rebrand.

AEG are also opening a new 4,000-cap venue nearby next spring as part of the River Park mixed-use development in southeast Austin.

C3 Presents, who reopened Emo’s at the Riverside location, say this isn’t the end of Emo’s — they’re working on a new home and plan to move the venue back to downtown Austin, with more updates to come.

AEG Presents Vice President Robin Phillips shared the following:

There’s like no weirdness or any bad blood or anything. It just, you know, new lease and they’ll [Emo’s] go do something great. They have been important to the Austin music scene, so I have a lot of respect for them.

But I don’t think the Austin music scene or legacy is limited to one name. I know people will remember the original Emo’s and this Emo’s as, you know, both great venues… And I don’t think Austin’s music scene is just a name, it’s the artists, in my opinion.

A C3 spokesperson added:

Emo’s has a long history in Austin and we’ve been working behind the scenes for some time on a new home for this venue. After we wrap up at this venue in December, we will focus our efforts on our new location.

Emo’s gave the following statement to Austin local news KXAN:

We’re grateful for all of the fans and artists who’ve shaped Emo’s to what it is today: a community of like-minded people who love live music. We have a vision for our future and will be moving into a new building downtown that celebrates our punk rock roots with the new amenities that fans are looking for from a venue. We’ll continue to share updates on the next chapter for Emo’s on social media.