Court grants state delay in making improvements to children's medical program in Texas
By The Associated Press
AUSTIN -- The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday granted the state's request for a delay in implementing a court-ordered plan to improve the children's Medicaid program.
On Oct. 10, U.S. District Court Judge William Justice denied the same request for a delay.
In August, Justice ruled that Texas does not adequately provide dental care, regular checkups, transportation to doctors or information about what services are available to children in Medicaid, despite a 1996 agreement in which the state promised to make major improvements in the program.
The state is appealing the entire Aug. 14 order. The appeals court, based in New Orleans, granted the delay until oral arguments are heard. A date for those arguments has not been set.
State Attorney General John Cornyn praised the latest ruling.
"Today's ruling recognizes that our appeal of Judge Justice's order will not prevent the state from continuing its good- faith efforts to ensure that every eligible Texan receives access to Medicaid services and programs," Cornyn said.
Susan Zinn, the San Antonio lawyer representing the plaintiffs in the original class-action lawsuit, did not immediately return a call seeking comment. She and some Democratic lawmakers have criticized the state for spending time appealing Justice's ruling instead of improving the program.
On Sept. 22, lawyers for the Texas attorney general's office told Justice that the Legislature and state officials should be allowed to fix the program without court involvement.
In denying the request, Justice extended the plan deadline to Oct. 27 and said that the state is being asked to do what it promised to do in the 1996 consent decree and that "any delay in compliance with the Aug. 14 order will result in further deterioration of the health and welfare of the program- qualifying children."
The state appealed that denial last week to the 5th Circuit.
In its appeal, the state says it has improved Texas Health Steps, the program at the center of the fight.
Participation in the program has increased from 29 percent in 1993 to 66 percent in 1998 and exceeds the national average of 54 percent. And Texas spends more on outreach, $18.4 million a year, than any other state, according to the state.
In his original ruling, Justice said many of the state's numbers were inflated or inaccurate because of the way they were collected. The data debate is a subject the state will tackle in its appeal. State lawyers have said the state gathers data according to federal rules.
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