Health Care
Portraits of the Pandemic: Part Two
One year in, we revisit Texans who shared their COVID-19 stories last summer.
By Texas Observer Staff Illustrations by John Jay Cabuay From the March/April 2021 issue. O ne year into the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of Texans have now been...Read More
Editorial: Texas Wasn’t Prepared for the Statewide Vaccine Rush
My elderly parents’ experience getting the COVID-19 vaccine highlights problems with Texas’ overall pandemic response.
When my parents, Joe and Zelma Brockman, arrived at a Grand Prairie clinic for their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, they were expecting a wait. They’d dr...Read More
COVID-19’s Deadly Toll on Texas Workers
As COVID-19 devastates workers unable to stay home, families are left struggling for justice.
Graveyard Shift As COVID-19 devastates workers unable to stay home, families are left struggling for justice. By Gus Bova January 18, 2021 From the January/Febr...Read More
COVID-19 Response has Been Starkly Different for Indigenous Communities in Texas
While coronavirus rates remain high, officials have taken unprecedented actions not found anywhere else in the state.
On March 23, the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas issued its first stay-at-home order. In April, the tribe would restrict out-of-state travel, and in May, offic...Read More
After Sarah Davis’ Election Defeat, Texas Reproductive Health Advocates Worry About Losing a Powerful Republican Ally
Democrats hoped to turn the Texas House blue. Instead they flipped just one seat: the most moderate Republican and only one to support abortion rights.
It was a Friday night in May 2019 when a six-hour House debate over a reproductive health bill ended the relative calm of Texas’ last legislative session. The...Read More
For Families That Lost Loved Ones or Jobs to the Pandemic, Thanksgiving Carries an Extra Weight This Year
This year’s pandemic has brought untold suffering to families across Texas. Making things worse: At a time when they might take solace in the company of friends or family, public health authorities are urging them to stay apart.
This story was originally published by the Texas Tribune. The Texas Tribune is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans—and engages wit...Read More
How We Got Here
Texas’ health system has been underfunded, understaffed, and unprepared for years. Here, COVID-19 found the perfect place to spread.
Texas’ health system has been underfunded, understaffed, and unprepared for years. Here, COVID-19 found the perfect place to spread. By Sophie Novack November...Read More
A West Texas Nursing Home Sent Its COVID-Positive Residents Elsewhere. Now Two of Them Are Dead.
Texas allows nursing homes to voluntarily accept COVID-positive patients from hospitals and other nursing homes. But there are no additional safeguards for the people sent there, and some of the facilities have a history of breaking rules.
John Wayne McDermett used to manage nursing homes. Now he lives in one. After serving 12 years as a rural county judge and working a stint as a disc jockey at a...Read More
The Forgotten Children of Texas
Each year, thousands of foster children in Texas are shuffled into little-known “treatment centers” where they are frequently neglected and abused. State officials have largely ignored allegations of wrongdoing and calls for reform.
The Forgotten Children of Texas Each year, thousands of foster children in Texas are shuffled into little-known “treatment centers” where they are frequentl...Read More
I Left My Friends in Prison in a Pandemic. Here’s What It’s Like For Them.
I receive phone calls from distraught friends inside complaining of unbearable heat, uncontrollable outbreaks, and paltry diets.
This story first appeared in the Guardian on October 9. When I first met my friend Melissa in prison, she impressed me with her ability to endure crisis with a ...Read More