Texas Gov. Abbott seeks retribution against hospital that advocates Medicaid expansion

[TexasTowelie]

Man, does Texas grow vindictive, conspiratorial Republicans, or what? Here's Gov. Gregg Abbott pulling a real Chris Christie move, essentially ordering a financial investigation of a nonprofit health insurer and affiliated hospital because its chief wrote an editorial he didn't like.

Shortly before 1 a.m. on July 15, Gov. Greg Abbott sent an email from his personal account to his top advisers about an editorial published by the Houston Chronicle.

Its author, Ken Janda, had written that Texas' health care safety net system for the poor and uninsured was "in serious danger of meltdown" because state leaders were refusing to expand health coverage to a million uninsured Texans living in poverty.

The governor told aides he wanted to "see the financials" of Janda's nonprofit Community Health Choice, a health insurer affiliated with the Harris Health System, one of Texas' largest public hospitals.

"I'm told by informed sources that most of these entities are rolling in dough," Abbott wrote. […]

At 6:30 a.m. on July 15, Abbott's policy director Drew DeBerry forwarded the governor's note about the editorial to other aides, asking them to compile information about the hospital system's profits.

"By engaging in this ridiculous editorial, this specific hospital has now put themselves on the list" of facilities whose finances the aides should review, DeBerry wrote.

Read more: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/09/03/1418084/-Texas-Gov-Abbott-seeks-retribution-against-hospital-that-advocates-Medicaid-expansion#

[riversedge]

1. 1 am; 6:30 am. Up late @ night and early in the morning to put some on a black list.

[hobbit709]

2. JuanitaJean was right.

"Greg Abbott is Rick Perry without the intelligence or charm."

[Gothmog]

3. Greg Abbott is not a nice person

[Javaman]

4. Like I've said before...

perry was a moron, abbott is just plain evil.

[hobbit709]

5. It's hard to believe but out of the last 3 govs, shrub was the smart one.

[They_Live]

6. I don't understand the logic.

Is Abbott suggesting that the hospital just cover the cost themselves? That is not going to happen. Pretty much every time he opens his mouth I smell another lawsuit against the state.

[DhhD]

7. Abbott is inferring that the hospital district must raise money through a local Hospital

District Tax, instead of Medicaid funding, through a scrutinized public Department of Health and Human Services. TX Department of HHS is being watched after its recent down grades.

IMO, Abbott is promoting the firing of Janda by the local RW politicians/aides, so that those in charge of the District or county, can set up the policy of who gets helped, at any hospital, that they control. Seems like an Abbott Hospital, is a mafia.

[DhhD]

8. Senator Cornyn-Expand Medicaid in Texas.