By Wohlgemuth H.C.R. No. 138 77R7078 MKS-F HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-1 WHEREAS, The Medicaid program allocates money to the states 1-2 to provide certain low-income individuals with health care 1-3 insurance and funding for acute care; and 1-4 WHEREAS, To access federal funds, the State of Texas is 1-5 obligated to provide certain health care benefits to individuals 1-6 eligible for Medicaid without regard to costs or the actual needs 1-7 of individuals; and 1-8 WHEREAS, The Medicaid program now represents almost 1-9 one-quarter of Texas' biennial budget, having increased four-fold 1-10 during the last 10 years; and 1-11 WHEREAS, During the same 10-year period, expanding Medicaid 1-12 has left the rate of individuals without health insurance in Texas 1-13 substantially unchanged; and 1-14 WHEREAS, Medicaid offers little flexibility for Texas to 1-15 develop innovative methods of providing health care to individuals 1-16 with low incomes or with acute health care needs as it requires 1-17 permission from the federal government to make changes in the 1-18 program; and 1-19 WHEREAS, The recent experience of welfare reform at the 1-20 federal level has provided Texas with the opportunity to use 1-21 federal funds in a flexible manner while providing necessary 1-22 services to many; and 1-23 WHEREAS, Texas has been able to move significant numbers of 1-24 individuals from welfare to work by virtue of the flexibility 2-1 afforded by congress; and 2-2 WHEREAS, As recently as 1996, congress proposed returning 2-3 Medicaid funds to the state as a block grant; and 2-4 WHEREAS, Providing Medicaid funds to Texas as a block grant 2-5 would offer the flexibility needed to meet the unique needs of the 2-6 state and provide better access to quality health care; now, 2-7 therefore, be it 2-8 RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-9 hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to 2-10 provide Medicaid funds to Texas in the form of a block grant; and, 2-11 be it further 2-12 RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official 2-13 copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to 2-14 the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of 2-15 the senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of 2-16 the Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this 2-17 resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a 2-18 memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.