Governor Greg Abbott today informed the U.S. Department of Labor that Texas will opt out of further federal unemployment compensation related to the COVID-19 pandemic, effective June 26, 2021. This includes the $300 weekly unemployment supplement from the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program.

“The Texas economy is booming and employers are hiring in communities throughout the state,” said Governor Abbott. “According to the Texas Workforce Commission, the number of job openings in Texas is almost identical to the number of Texans who are receiving unemployment benefits. That assessment does not include the voluminous jobs that typically are not listed, like construction and restaurant jobs. In fact, there are nearly 60 percent more jobs open (and listed) in Texas today than there was in February 2020, the month before the Pandemic hit Texas.”

The current job openings are good-paying jobs. According to the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), nearly 45 percent of posted jobs offer wages greater than $15.50 per hour.  Approximately 76 percent pay more than $11.50 per hour. Only 2 percent of posted jobs pay around the minimum wage.

At this stage of opening the state 100 percent, the focus must be on helping unemployed Texans connect with the more than a million job openings, rather than paying unemployment benefits to remain off the employment rolls.

Another reason why today’s action is needed is the high level of fraudulent unemployment claims being filed. Fraudulent unemployment claims rob taxpayer money and do nothing to help the unemployed. TWC estimates that nearly 18 percent of all claims for unemployment benefits during the pandemic are confirmed or suspected to be fraudulent, which totals more than 800,000 claims, worth as much as $10.4 billion if all claims had been paid.

Federal law requires the effective date of this change to be at least 30 days after notification is provided to the Secretary of Labor. As a result, the effective date will be June 26, 2021.

Source: gov.texas.gov

Texas Governor Greg Abbott caught heat from Democratic lawmakers when he announced on March 2 this year he would fully reopen the state by the next week. Mississippi lawmakers declared a similar reopening plan about the same time.

The idea was to get more people acclimated back to normal life, including businesses at full capacity and sports arenas full of fans again. For Texas, the governor wanted businesses back at 100 percent and placed filled up again, from school halls to dance halls.

President Joe Biden called such reopening plans “Neanderthals thinking.”

“I hope everybody has realized by now these masks make a difference. We are on the cusp of being able to fundamentally change the nature of this disease because of the way we are able to get the vaccine in people’s arms,” Biden said in the White House on March 3.

“The last thing we need is the Neanderthal thinking that in the meantime everything’s fine, take off your mask, forget it. It still matters. … It’s critical, critical, critical, critical that they follow the science.”

Texas blazed its own path and reopened for business, and the Texas Rangers had a ballpark full of cheering fans for its home opener last month.

On Sunday, just a couple of hours after a major PGA event in Dallas and the NCAA FCS college football national championship in Frisco, Abbott reported that the state had no COVID-related deaths the previous 24 hours and that the seven-day positivity rate was the lowest it’s been since records have been taken—which was March 2020.

Biden expressed disappointment in those states that had plans to fully reopen, saying the goal was for every American adult to receive vaccinations before starting big gatherings, with a target date of July 4 for families to get together and celebrate.

“We’ve been able to move that all the way up to the end of May have enough for every American, to get every adult American to get a shot,” Biden said in March.

Biden was 0-for-2 against Texas when, after the Rangers baseball organization said it planned to open at full capacity following Abbott’s executive order, the president called that decision a “mistake.” Rangers general manager Jon Daniels shrugged off that comment and said he still hoped for a full venue on opening day, which he got.

Source: www.newsweek.com

The Biden Administration is facing a lawsuit from Texas after rescinding a Medicaid waiver extension put in place by the Trump Administration. The lawsuit claims the waiver’s removal makes it difficult for the state to plan long-term as it doesn’t know if funding will be in place for healthcare programs, and says the notification came too late for the Texas Legislature to respond with its own funding solutions.

Why does Texas need a Medicaid waiver?

Texas is one of 12 states that has not adopted federal Medicaid expansion. The Medicaid 115 waiver that was granted on Jan. 15 allowed the state to tap into federal and state funding to run its Texas Healthcare Transformation and Quality Improvement Program, which has been in place since 2011. That program allows Texas to expand its existing Medicaid-managed care programs that serve low-income families and children as well as the elderly and those with disabilities.

According to the lawsuit, Texas offers Medicaid coverage to about 4.3 million people.

The Texas Healthcare Transformation and Quality Improvement Program also allowed the state to “finance a new safety net care pool to assist hospitals and other providers with uncompensated care costs and to promote health system transformation in preparation for new coverage demands,” according to the original application in 2011. Since then Texas has received three waiver extensions and increased the services affected under those waivers.

The Texas Hospital Association says the Texas Healthcare Transformation and Quality Improvement Program is worth more than $11 billion a year. The waiver would have extended the program to Sept. 30, 2030.

Why was Texas’ Medicaid waiver rescinded?

In April, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services removed the extension, saying the federal government had “materially erred” in granting the request for a sped-up approval process that didn’t include public comment. It said the state hadn’t given a good enough reason for skipping the normal public notice process.

In the lawsuit, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says COVID-19 disrupted normal healthcare operations and made it difficult to measure key metrics the program was studying. It also put a financial strain on healthcare providers.

Texas’ response: Friday’s lawsuit

Paxton announced the state’s lawsuit Friday, saying, “The Biden Administration cannot simply breach a contract and topple Texas’s Medicaid system without warning.”

Paxton said there had been more than a month of negotiations before the waiver was approved in January. Paxton also claimed the motive behind the removal was to push Texas toward federal Medicaid expansion.

KXAN has reached out to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for a comment on the lawsuit and will update this story when it responds.

The lawsuit is requesting the court invalidate the April letter rescinding the extension and let the waiver remain in place. Without an extension, the Texas Healthcare Transformation and Quality Improvement Program ends Sept. 30, 2022.

Source: www.kxan.com

Houston First Corporation (HFC) is excited to invite the public to join in the celebration of Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month with a collection of events, programs, stories, and art.

Learn something new— virtually or in person. Try a new dish, explore cutting-edge fashion, art, and dance, or get more details and information digitally. Everyone can experience and enjoy all of this year’s cultural offerings free of charge. All HFC-sponsored events have been designed with the public’s safety in mind and have been approved by the Mayor’s Office of Special Events.

As the official destination management organization for the most diverse city in the nation, HFC is troubled by the growing violence against Asian Americans around the nation and condemns violence against anyone based on race, nationality, religion, or immigration status. HFC is committed to promoting understanding and tolerance by making sure our programming reflects the rich tapestry of cultures and people who call Houston home.

HFC AAPI Heritage Month Programs and Events

AAPI Amplified – Fashion, Market, Food @ Avenida Houston – Saturday, May 22, 5-8:30 pm on the Plaza at Avenida (between the GRB & Discovery Green) The event is free and open to the public.

Join HFC on the Avenida as we amplify the voices of the Asian American Pacific Islander community. HFC will celebrate and

support Houston’s vibrant AAPI communities with an evening of traditional and contemporary music and dance performances, an Asian-inspired fashion show, and an outdoor market featuring local AAPI-owned businesses, artisans, and chefs.

Don’t miss the one-of-a-kind fashion show starting at 7 p.m. on Avenida’s Wharf runway, featuring Houston-based collections by Danny Nguyen Couture, Kimono Zulu, Mysterious by NPN and Poshak Fashion & Style.

AAPI Cultural Content on HFC digital channels

Discover and learn more about Houston’s AAPI culture and community digitally on HFC’s websites and social channels.

VisitHouston.com is dedicating multiple pages to celebrate AAPI Heritage Month and encourage visitors to the site to also take advantage of an Events Calendar to help with planning for the month.

Check out these features on the site throughout the month of May:

The line-up for AAPI Heritage Month on HoustonFirst.com includes interviews with local Asian American restaurant owners. Find out their thoughts on surviving the pandemic and violence against Asian Americans. Lana and Cuong Vuong own Hai Cang in Chinatown, and Minh Nguyen and Dr. Benjamin Choi, own Cafe TH & Celadon Coffee in EaDo (East Downtown Houston).

See more of HFC’s year-long cultural heritage celebrations.