Health

Amid Crisis in Veterans Care, Texas Embarks on a ‘Psychedelic Revolution’

byMichael Karlis

The staggering number of veteran suicides, combined with Texas’ large population of former service members, has led the state to becoming what some experts are calling the center of the “psychedelic revolution.”
A slew of bills in the Texas Legislature have garnered broad, bipartisan support, including House Bill 3137, which would mandate the largest appropriation of public funds for psychedelic research in U.S. history.

Lunches for Texas Students Expected to Suffer After USDA Pulls Plug on Local Food for Schools Program

byMadeline de Figueiredo and Rebecca Butler

The Local Food for Schools initiative was set to distribute $660 million to state agencies in fiscal 2025, aiming to help schools and child care facilities buy locally grown food in 40 states.

A Conference on UT Campus for ‘Pro-Natalists’ Draws Ire

byAlex Lamb

In April 2024, state and local police cracked down on University of Texas students protesting Israel’s invasion of Gaza, following calls for intervention by university administrators. As with protests on other college campuses, university and political leaders accused the pro-Palestinian protesters of antisemitism.
Almost a year later, one of the same groups involved in those protests, the Austin Chapter of Students for a Democratic Society, took part in another protest — this time to oppose the presence of alleged neo-Nazis and eugenicists at a conference held on the UT campus. The activists highlighted what they called a disconnect between the treatment of two groups accused of connections to antisemitic views

Texas’ Suicide Hotline, Overburdened and Underfunded, Could Get Support from a Proposed Bill.

byMadeline De Figueiredo

Each month, thousands of Texans reach out for support in difficult moments by dialing 988, the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. But, for some, their calls are met with long wait times and multiple transfers to out-of-state centers. Texas faces a $7 million shortfall in funding for the 988 system.

Texans Rally in Defense of Science and Against Trump Administration Cuts

byMadeline De Figueiredo

Hundreds gathered in front of the Texas Capitol for a “Stand Up to Science” rally Friday, demanding the defense of scientific integrity, expanded funding and the protection of diversity in research. The rally, one of 32 in cities across the country, was organized in response to the Trump administration’s cuts to scientific funding, the removal […]

Austin Schools’ Low Vaccination Rate Draws Concern Amid Measles Outbreak

byMadeline de Figueiredo

Travis County is ramping up its vaccination efforts, particularly for schoolchildren, as neighboring Hays County warned Sunday of possible measles exposure in San Marcos. 

In Rural West Texas, Measles Outbreak Signals Concerns over Federal Changes

byMadeline De Figueiredo

Amid concerns that Trump administration policies have reduced access to public health data, the Texas Department of State Health Services has confirmed a measles outbreak in Gaines County, which borders New Mexico, with six cases reported so far.

They provide for others. Now community attendants want the Legislature to provide a livable wage.

byMadeline de Figueiredo

Thomas Greenwell wakes up each morning and gets ready twice — he goes through the motions of brushing teeth twice, doing hair twice and getting dressed twice — once for himself and once for his client, Edgar. But Greenwell doesn’t know how much longer he will be able to afford to take care of Edgar as a community-based care provider under Medicaid. “The attendant care wages are not sustainable at all,” he says. The Legislature will revisit attendant wages in this spring’s legislative session as caregivers and advocacy groups push for more competitive and livable wages.

Advocates Race to Inform Immigrants, Hospitals as Abbott Demands Citizenship Reports

byMadeline de Figueiredo

In the leadup to the Nov. 1 implementation of Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order requiring Texas public hospitals to report on health care for undocumented immigrants, advocacy groups raced to inform affected communities and providers about the policy’s implications and limitations.

Child-free Texans Raise Voices Despite Stigmatized Life Choice

byKatrina L. Spencer

Sending a message to his more than 40,000 followers on social media platform X in March, Houstonian Adrian C. Jackson told the world he had made a major life decision. “Might as well make this a public journey to inform & encourage other men,” he tweeted March 10. “The appointment is booked. I’m going through with it. I’m getting a vasectomy.”
Jackson is one of an increasing number of child-free Texans who intend to remain so. 

As Younger Drinkers Forgo Alcohol, Bartenders Are Mixing Up More Booze-free Cocktails

byKatrina L. Spencer

“A cocktail is interesting whether it has alcohol or not,” said Armando Garza, a bartender at the Roosevelt Room.
The Roosevelt Room and other Austin bars are tapping into the trend of consumers forgoing alcohol when they go out for happy hours, gatherings and celebrations. A 2023 Gallup report found that only 62% of 18- to 34-year-olds said they had occasion to drink in 2021-23, down from 72% two decades ago.

Texas politicians point to mental health as the cause of mass shootings — experts say more funding won’t help

byIsabella Zeff

When Jesse Woche heard about the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, the now 24-year-old felt galvanized to work in the gun violence prevention space full time. She had been interested in advocacy since she was 15, shifting between environmental conservation, abortion access and other causes that mattered to her. “(The shooting) just […]