Texas lawmakers zero in on health programs

Editor’s Note: The Texas Tribune is recapping the 2023 Texas Legislative Session in a series of articles.

Low-income mothers in Texas won some health gains during this past legislative session, primarily through the expansion of postpartum Medicaid benefits, but overall state lawmakers kept their eyes and dollars focused on law tweaks and boosting dollars to existing health care programs instead of launching sweeping new initiatives.

For the most part this legislative session, state lawmakers stuck close to the familiar, leaving bolder measures on substance abuse and mental health treatment by the wayside.