House steps outside Abbott’s agenda, votes to restore therapy cuts for kids
AUSTIN — Lawmakers in the Texas House voted unanimously to reverse millions of dollars in therapy cuts for children with disabilities Tuesday, although the plan is outside the realm of the governor’s special session agenda.
Legislators are limited to passing legislation related to the 20 topics Gov. Greg Abbott outlined when calling lawmakers back to Austin for the special session, but the sponsor of the bill said she didn’t care her bill was outside his call.
“If the governor is going to bring us back here to talk about what bathrooms people can use or what we can do with our trees, the surely the disabled kids should take priority and hopefully we add this to the call,” said Rep. Sarah Davis, a Republican from West University Place.
Lawmakers on the House Appropriations Committee agreed, and voted 21-0 in favor of Davis’ proposal to restore funding for the Early Childhood Intervention program, a state service that provides free or discounted therapy for babies and toddlers with developmental disabilities, such as speech delays, down syndrome and autism.
Several House legislators say they have been encouraged by the speaker to file bills that are important to them. For Davis, that meant trying to shore up funding for ECI which has seen its budget slashed by more than 10 percent since 2010. The result has meant tighter eligibility criteria, at least a 14 percent drop in babies and toddlers receiving therapy for their disabilities and a decline in the number of providers.
OKs $163M in spending
Harris County is one of the hardest-hit areas. The number of children enrolled there in intervention programs is down by nearly a third, and enrollment of black children in the Gulf Coast region has fallen by more than 40 percent, according to a 2016 report by Texans Care for Children, a nonprofit advocacy group.
The House committee agreed to spend $70 million in state funds and $93 million in federal funds over the biennium. The effort works to counteract last year’s $350 million in Medicaid reimbursement rates cuts for speech therapy, physical therapy and other therapies to help young children overcome their disability.
Uses rainy day funds
The move would be funded out of the state’s rainy day fund, requiring lawmakers to consider financing again in the 2019 legislative session.
That’s assuming the Senate goes along with the House on the bill in this special session. A similar bill that passed the House during the regular session restored 50 percent of the funding, but the Senate would only agree to replenish 25 percent of the cuts.
Cuts have led to a drop in the number of service providers. Three organizations that provided therapy to children with disabilities have decided to drop off the Early Childhood Intervention program due to the cuts, including the University of Texas Medical Branch in the Galveston area, Hill Country MHDD and Easter Seals East Texas.
The Texas Health and Human Services Commission said it is working to find new providers.
“We know this is an incredibly important program for families, and we’re working quickly to try to find replacement contractors in the areas so kids have access to the services they need,” said Carrie Williams, chief press officer for the commission.
Providers, parents and children with disabilities came to the Capitol to testify in favor of the legislation, saying the services are much needed to ensure babies and toddlers can work through their disabilities, which will help them perform better in school, in the community, and eventually in the workforce.
“I think the best thing that we can do as members is to draw attention to those issues that are important to us,” said Rep. Larry Gonzales, a Republican from Round Rock who has a son diagnosed with autism who benefited from therapy. “The cuts are real and the kids are being denied therapy, which can help them, which will help them.”