Texas
After a Million Texas Kids Were Kicked Off Medicaid, Thousands More Are Still in Limbo
Nearly two out of three Texans who’ve lost Medicaid coverage since last April were children (image via Getty Images)
More than a million Texas kids in low-income families have lost their health insurance since last spring, according to state-reported data. Three out of four Medicaid recipients in Texas are children, and nearly two out of three Texans disenrolled during the post-pandemic “unwinding” process have been kids.
During the pandemic, a provision in a federal COVID relief package blocked states from kicking people off of Medicaid, even if they were no longer eligible. When that federal legislation expired in April 2023, states began reassessing people’s eligibility in a process called unwinding. It’s been chaotic in Texas with large backlogs and extremely long delays for families applying for health care or food assistance.
“Texans in need have been forced to wait several months for their SNAP and/or Medicaid applications to be processed. As a result, countless Texas families will go hungry,” stated a December letter to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) sent by a pair of legislative caucuses, the Texas Women’s Health Caucus and the Texas House Early Childhood Caucus.
That letter implored the agency to resolve the backlogs by this March, but they have only grown.
HHSC Spokesperson Tiffany Young told the Chronicle that staff has moved aggressively to reduce the number of applications in the queue. The good news is that the maximum wait for an application to be assigned to an eligibility worker has gone down – from 120 days in November to less than 40 days in December.
But even with reduced lead time, backlogs grew from December to January. As of Dec. 8, there were 207,465 SNAP applications and 288,939 Medicaid applications waiting to be processed. As of Jan. 26, there were 18,173 more SNAP applications and 64,604 more Medicaid applications in the backlog, per data provided by HHSC spokesperson Jennifer Ruffcorn.
Though the current eligibility crisis is acute, HHSC has chronically failed to meet federal standards for timely processing of SNAP applications since at least 2021, two years before unwinding began, according to the joint caucus letter. (Young said HHSC found no factual errors in that letter.)
Most Medicaid recipients in Texas are kids, and 65% of people kicked off Medicaid since last April were children.
Prior to unwinding, it would have been difficult to directly compare how efficiently states automatically renew coverage, but as part of the process states have reported their “ex parte” renewal rates, meaning the percentage of applications that are renewed automatically based on data. Now, it’s clear that Texas fails to renew coverage more often than any other U.S. state.
The joint caucus letter demanded an answer from HHSC on that point: Why does our system renew eligibility for so few people?
An HHSC spokesperson told the Chronicle the low renewal rate is a side effect of the state’s approach. During unwinding, Texas has reviewed applications from those most likely to no longer qualify first. “Not all states are distributing renewals in the same manner,” Young said.
But Texas is not the only state taking that approach. The research nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) closely tracks how states are handling unwinding and found 16 states are using a hybrid approach that involves frontloading applicants who are unlikely to qualify. KFF reports “several states will focus first on enrollees who have been flagged as potentially ineligible.”
Whatever the cause of Texas’ worst-in-the-nation ex parte renewal rate, the two caucuses want to understand it better. The December letter asked for an analysis on ex parte renewal, adding that HHSC should “quickly address the shortcomings identified in that analysis.” HHSC did not answer whether such an analysis is planned.
The letter penned by the caucuses made several other demands, some of which HHSC met. (For example, HHSC asked for an emergency waiver from the USDA to extend SNAP for people up for recertification until backlogs are eliminated – though the USDA denied that request.) One demand HHSC has so far refused sticks out: The letter called for HHSC to request a waiver from the federal Medicaid agency – Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) – to temporarily extend children’s Medicaid for kids in limbo during unwinding. When asked if HHSC had requested that waiver, Young said “no,” adding that HHSC “has implemented dozens of strategies to make the unwinding as smooth as possible for clients and eligibility staff.”
Where does that leave us? Lawmakers in the two caucuses want to know “the full range of investments and policy changes needed to maintain a high-performing eligibility system,” per the letter. We asked HHSC what some of those investments and policy changes might be. Young answered that the 88th Legislature approved 25% salary increases for eligibility staff, plus more than 600 temporary staff to help with unwinding. “Hiring, training and retaining staff are long-term solutions to managing workload and reducing reliance on mandatory overtime,” Young said. “However, it takes a new eligibility adviser a year to be proficient with application processing and overtime is the most readily available tool to address workload quickly.”
Got something to say? The Chronicle welcomes opinion pieces on any topic from the community. Submit yours now at austinchronicle.com/opinion.
Live Updates – Tennessee Lady Vols vs. Texas Tech Softball (WCWS)
Current Score: Tied 0-0
***Note: If you want the latest updates make sure to refresh the story***
First Inning:
Top: Karlyn Pickens strikes the first batter out. Texas Tech hits a single that went off the glove of Pickens. Jackie Lis comes to the plate. She advances the runner, but she grounds out to short. Pickens gets a massive strikeout to end the inning. Great job by the Lady Vols ace.
Bottom: Tennessee will now come to the plate. Kaitlyn Terry is the pitcher for the Red Raiders. Sophia Knight will start it off. Knight hits an infield single thanks to her speed. Here comes game one’s MVP, Elsa Morrison. Morrison strikes out. Ella Dodge hits a grounder to second, which gets the runner out, but she is safe at first. Emma Clarke hits a line out to Williams at second base to end the inning, as she had to make a vertical effort to bring that one down.
Second Inning:
Top: Here comes former Lady Vol Taylor Pannell. She pops out. Pickens will face the Red Raiders’ pitcher, who also hits. Pickens gets the Lady Vols off the field.
Bottom: Leach lines out to begin the inning. Makenzie Butt pops out to right field, which will be out No. 2. Gabby Leach is out to end the inning for the Lady Vols.
Third Inning:
Top: Quiroga lines out to begin the inning, and Pickens continues to move strongly. Halleman grounded out to second for out No. 2. Williams grounded out to third, which will get the Lady Vols off the field.
Bottom: Bella Faw singles to get on base. Holley grounds out, but Faw advances to second. Knight is struck by a pitch, and there are now two on base for the Lady Vols with only one out this inning. This gives Tennessee two on with a runner in scoring position. Here comes the Red Raiders’ ace, Nija Canady. Morrison fouls out. A wild pitch advances both runners. One at third and one at second now with two outs. Dodge is hit by a pitch, and bases are now loaded for the Lady Vols. Canady forced a full count for Clarke with bases loaded, and Clarke collided with Lis around first base, and the bases were left loaded. Texas Tech escapes.
Fourth Inning:
Top: Pickens forces a groundout. Lis grounds out, and the Lady Vols have put two away quickly. Pickens retires her 11th straight batter after forcing a groundout to second base.
Bottom: Leach reaches to begin the inning. It was via an error. She will be taken out of the game for a pinch runner. Saviya Morgan is on base. Makenzie Butt is up to bat. Canady strikes Butt out. Morgan gets picked off at second base. Gabby Leach hits a single to center field.
Pre Game Information
The Tennessee Lady Vols are set for their next matchup in the softball realm, as this is the second game they will play in the Women’s College World Series. In their first game, they were victorious against the Texas Longhorns, as they defeated the Longhorns by a score of 6-3 in a game in which they were viewed as the underdogs. Now they will have to play another great team with the hopes of continuing to hold on to their advantage of having no losses in a two-loss tournament. After today, only two of the eight teams that advanced and two of the six teams that remain will be able to say that.
The Lady Vols are up first out of the two games today, and they will be playing against the Texas Tech Red Raiders. The Red Raiders are entering this game with no losses after defeating the Mississippi State Bulldogs in their game. The Bulldogs entered the event as the biggest underdog, but the Red Raiders can compete with any of the teams at the event. They had to defeat a Florida Gators team that won a series against the Lady Vols to get to the Women’s College World Series.
This game will be one of the more anticipated games in the whole tournament, as this may not even be the only time that these two match up throughout the World Series. Regardless, the Tennessee Lady Vols will look for another big moment in the biggest game of their season thus far.
Follow Our Social Media Accounts
• Follow Vols on SI on X (Click HERE)
• Follow Vols on SI on Facebook (Click HERE)
• Follow Vols on SI on Instagram (Click HERE)
• Subscribe to Vols on SI on YouTube (Click HERE)
Follow Our Staff on X
• Follow Caleb Sisk on X (Click HERE)
• Follow Dale Dowden on X (Click HERE)
Follow Our Staff on Instagram
• Follow Caleb Sisk on Instagram (Click HERE)
• Follow Dale Dowden on Instagram (Click HERE)
Follow Our Staff on Facebook
• Follow Caleb Sisk on Facebook (Click HERE)
• Follow Dale Dowden on Facebook (Click HERE)
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
• You can join our newsletter (HERE)
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — After spending most of Friday night wasting scoring opportunities, Adrian Lopez and his USC teammates headed into the ninth inning with plenty of confidence. Unfortunately for the Trojans, Texas State wasn’t done yet.
Lopez gave the Trojans the lead in the eighth inning with a home run at Blue Bell Park, but USC couldn’t close out the opener of the NCAA tournament’s College Station Regional.
Texas State’s Chase Mora greeted USC closer Adam Troy with a monstrous two-run home run to left field in the top of ninth, propelling the Bobcats to 5-4 upset before a crowd of 6,956.
“To take the lead right there late, we’re riding high feeling real good and confident going into the ninth,” Lopez said. “I think … the ball fell how it fell. It is what it is. But we’re pretty stoked and excited going into the ninth with the lead.”
Texas State coach Steve Trout mused that it felt as though the Bobcats were “on the ropes” all night. As trite as that might sound, he’s right.
Unfortunately for the Trojans, they never could deliver the knockout punch. Texas State wasn’t as forgiving. Mora was sitting on Troy’s fastball, and he pounced for his 11th home run of the year.
“Sure enough,” Mora said, “I got the pitch I was sitting on and made a good swing.”
Troy’s blown save was a major part of the story. He arguably wasn’t the biggest reason USC lost, though. The Trojans had plenty of chances. They wasted most of them, leaving 13 men on base on a night they struck out 12 times.
Moreover, the Trojans wasted a major bases-loaded scoring opportunity when Isaac Cadena was picked off at second base for the second out of the fifth. Walter Urbon then flew out to right to end the threat.
“We got picked off there at second base with one out,” USC coach Andy Stankiewicz said. “That was kind of a gut shot. We have to be better on the bases. We have to be a little more aware when we get off the bag there.
“I thought we executed fine to get runners where we needed to get them. The second part is we got to get them across home plate. That’s the part we didn’t do as well tonight.”
The Bobcats’ shaky defense spotted USC two unearned runs. The Trojans will surely lament, however, stranding runners in scoring position in each of the first seven innings.
The Trojans will now prepare to face Lamar University, which blew a five-run lead in a 7-5 loss to host Texas A&M earlier Friday.
If Stankiewicz’s Trojans return to the College World Series for the first time since 2001, the 12-time national champions must do it out of the losers’ bracket.
“We’re just going to battle our tails off to keep showing up,” said Abbrie Covarrubias, who gave the Trojans a 3-1 lead with a home run in the fourth inning. “We’re in the fire, so we’re just going to battle our way through and pour our hearts out really.”
USC right-hander Grant Govel, an All-Big Ten First Team selection, settled for a no-decision after giving up three runs on four hits with two walks and six strikeouts over 5 ⅔ innings.
He was relieved by freshman left-hander Sax Matson with one on and two outs in the top of the sixth. Matson escaped unscathed in the sixth, but he was relieved by right-hander Andrew Johnson with one on and two outs in the seventh.
The Trojans, who reached the Big Ten Tournament semifinals, have lost four of their last five games.
“We left some runners in scoring position,” Stankiewicz said. “I’d like to have those back. But they made some pitches when they needed to.”
Stankiewicz, Adrian Lopez and Covarrubias are adamant that they believe in Troy, who has a team-leading 12 saves this season. No other Trojan has more than three saves.
“He’s been our guy, like coach said,” Lopez said of Troy. “He has a number … of saves. We trust him with everything we have. I wouldn’t want anyone else throwing the last couple pitches of the game. Going tomorrow, everyone’s available. If he’s back in that same situation, I’m just as confident as ever.”
OKLAHOMA CITY — Mississippi State softball is playing in an elimination game at the Women’s College World Series.
The Bulldogs (43-20) are facing No. 2 seed Texas (47-12) at Devon Park on May 29 (6 p.m. CT, ESPN).
Mississippi State and its fans are doing everything they can to muster up some good luck, including using broccoli, which has become the team’s rally prop throughout the NCAA Tournament.
Some fans and parents of the players are even wearing T-shirts with images of broccoli on them that read “Broccoli Power.”
Here’s what to know about the shirts and why MSU is wearing them.
Why are Mississippi State fans wearing broccoli shirts?
Broccoli became MSU’s good luck charm after a fan known as Broccoli Guy started cheering them on at the Eugene Regional.
He used broccoli as pom-poms while dancing in the stands. For the regional final, MSU brought broccoli for players to hold in the dugout for good luck.
This trend continued during the super regionals, with MSU bringing broccoli on the bus, holding it in the dugout and posting pictures and videos of it on social media ahead of Game 3 against Oklahoma. Broccoli Guy also showed up to support the Bulldogs again.
Now, with the Bulldogs facing elimination at the WCWS, fans, parents and players are hoping the broccoli shirts, along with their physical stalks of broccoli, will help power them to a win over the Longhorns.
2026 Women’s College World Series schedule
All times CT
- May 28
- Game 1: Texas Tech 8, Mississippi State 0
- Game 2: Tennessee 6, Texas 3
- Game 3: Alabama 6, UCLA 3
- Game 4: Nebraska 5, Arkansas 3
- May 29
- Game 5: Mississippi State vs Texas (6 p.m., ESPN)
- Game 6: UCLA vs Arkansas (8:30 p.m., ESPN)
- May 30
- Game 7: Texas Tech vs Tennessee (2 p.m., ABC)
- Game 8: Alabama vs Nebraska (6 p.m., ESPN)
- May 31
- Game 9: Game 5 winner vs Game 8 loser (2 p.m., ABC)
- Game 10: Game 6 winner vs Game 7 loser (6 p.m., ESPN2)
- June 1
- Game 11: Game 7 winner vs Game 9 winner (11 a.m., ESPN)
- Game 12 (if necessary): Game 7 winner vs Game 9 winner (1:30 p.m., ESPN)
- Game 13: Game 8 winner vs Game 10 winner (6 p.m., ESPN2)
- Game 14 (if necessary): Game 8 winner vs Game 10 winner (8:30 p.m., ESPN2)
- June 3
- Finals Game 1 (7 p.m., ESPN)
- June 4
- Finals Game 2 (7 p.m., ESPN)
- June 5
- If necessary, finals Game 3 (7 p.m., ESPN)
Tia Reid covers Jackson State sports for the Clarion Ledger. Email her at treid@usatodayco.com and follow her on X @tiareid65.
-
West Virginia59 seconds agoTurnpike worker injured after truck topples into tollbooth – WV MetroNews
-
Wyoming4 minutes agoChildren’s Hospital Colorado hosts Wyoming Pediatric Mental Health Symposium in downtown Casper
-
Crypto9 minutes agoAmericanfortress Links Stealth Addresses to Arbitrum as DeFi Firms Watch Compliance
-
Finance16 minutes agoHong Kong property recovery tested as bigger student housing deals gain traction
-
Fitness19 minutes agoStress and S$500 monthly gym fees. Is your fitness routine draining you?
-
Movie Reviews31 minutes ago“Backrooms” Might Just Signal a New Era for Horror (Movie Reviews)
-
World39 minutes agoVideo: W.H.O. Chief Visits Ebola-Struck Region: ‘It’s Time to Move Fast’
-
News46 minutes agoVideo: Loud Booms Heard Along the East Coast This Week
