Children's health in Texas

Eight per cent of children in the U. S. have no health insurance coverage.  That compares to Texas with 14% of its children uninsured.

Here's some even more shocking news:  According to the good folks at Children's Medical Center, 5 North Texas counties have twice the national average with it comes to uninsured children.

Here's the harsh reality:

Fannin County (Bonham) 16.3% uninsured children

Collin County (McKinney, one of the wealthiest counties in the nation) 16.7% uninsured

Denton County (Denton)  17.4% uninsured

Grayson County (Sherman) 19.1% of children have no health coverage

Cooke County (Gainesville) almost 1/4 of children with no coverage at 23.9%

The character of a people must include some measure of just how much they value their children, all of their children. 

We can do better. 

Where's the leadership? 

CitySquare clinic impact

Recently, I received a report on the impact of the work of our Community Health Services team on the health outcomes of our patients.  The analysis compared hospital utilization and costs of CitySquare patients to those of similarly uninsured patients from the Baylor University Medical Center (BUMC) service area.

Here’s what we found:

a. CitySquare patients were half as likely to be admitted to BUMC as their non-CitySquare counterparts.

b. When admitted, the average length of stay for our patients was 4.6 days, compared to 5.6 days for the non-CitySquare, uninsured patients.

c. When admitted, the average cost of an inpatient stay for a CitySquare patient was $6,500, compared to $9,100 for non-CitySquare, uninsured patients.

d. Unfortunately, this study revealed that CitySquare patients were just as likely to visit the ED as their non-CDM counterparts. Among other responses, this finding should motivate us to make medical contact information more readily available to our patients for those after hours times when care is needed. 

Clearly, the partnership we enjoy with the Baylor Health Care System and Health Texas Provider Network is paying off for and in our community.

Health care reform and faith

Here's the first section of Jim Wallis' recent essay, A Faith Declaration for Health-Care Reform. I believe the statement is very important.

Over the course of the health-care debate, voices of faith have been raised about the moral values at stake beneath the policy discussions. As bills are finalized and moved through both chambers of Congress, now more than ever we need to remind ourselves of the values that move us to reform. From the Bill of Rights to the abolition of slavery, from women’s suffrage to the civil rights movement, those who have raised the question of values have often changed our country for the better. Change can be scary in uncertain times, but it always comes when a nation chooses hope over fear.

Unfortunately, God sent Moses down from the mountain with only the Ten Commandments, and not a health-care bill ready to be passed out of committee. There is no one “right” religious position on how health care should be provided. But I believe there are some fundamental moral and biblical principles on which to evaluate any final legislative agreement, principles on which many people of faith -- even politically diverse people -- might agree. After the heat of the summer’s confrontations over health care, it’s time for a cooler fall debate. It’s time for a re-set of the health-care debate, and a return to some basic principles could help.

To read his "Five Principles of Faith for Health-Care Reform" and his entire statement click here.

Reactions welcome.