Research Library

Addressing non-medical drivers of health (NMDOH) is crucial to improving health outcomes and containing health care costs. A brief by Jacquie Klotz, Charles W. Mathias, and Elena M. Marks reports findings from policy crowdsourcing workshops. Researchers, practitioners, and policymakers joined the Texas NMDOH Consortium to collaborate on identifying NMDOH policy opportunities in Texas. In the Fall of 2024, the Texas NMDOH Consortium will publish policy recommendations to elaborate on opportunities to advance the integration of non-medical interventions into the health care system.

Can Texas’ approach to U.S.-Mexico border relations really solve long-standing migration and fentanyl issues? This new brief from the Center for the U.S and Mexico — based on a conversation with R. Gil Kerlikowske, former Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection — examines Gov. Greg Abbott’s strategy, focusing on the deployment of buoys along the Rio Grande and their symbolism.

Medical providers are increasingly asking patients about their access to food, housing, and transportation. In this commentary, fellow Elena M. Marks explores how this type of screening for non-medical needs offers significant benefits for both patients and providers — even when providers cannot address those needs.

Despite a cap on Houston’s property tax collections, these taxes have outpaced population growth and inflation, writes fellow John W. Diamond. This issue brief examines the rise in property tax revenues and proposes strategies for maintaining a sustainable city budget.

The number of anti-vaccine bills filed in Texas has risen, yet many Texans support vaccine policy. Fellow Kirstin R.W. Matthews and nonresident scholar Rekha Lakshmanan examine the stakes of legislative engagement in public health initiatives and provide a call to action for Texans to embrace public health as an act of freedom.

David R. Brockman and Edward M. Emmett discuss three high-profile bills introduced by Texas lawmakers in 2023 and their connection to a broader movement that seeks to privilege Christianity in public schools.

Attempts to undermine church-state separation in Texas reached a crescendo in 2023, writes nonresident scholar David R. Brockman. In this paper, he explores how three high-profile bills introduced during the state’s 88th legislative session threatened to tear down the wall between church and state.

It may pay to shop around for health care. New legislation requiring transparency in health insurance coverage allows price comparisons between hospitals, across hospital systems, and with different insurers. In a new issue brief, Vivian Ho and co-author Evelyn Li compare quality and analyze pricing data from Houston area hospitals.

In a new brief, McClain Sampson, fellow in Maternal and Reproductive Health, and co-author Priscilla P. Kennedy summarize how the recent Texas Medicaid and CHIP extension will benefit families and explore the expected impacts of this extension.

Electricity demand in Texas is evolving, posing major challenges for grid reliability. Center for Energy Studies experts lay out ways ERCOT, Texas’ grid operator, can enhance reliability and resource adequacy.