The 89th Texas legislative session has brought increased attention to policy solutions addressing the non-medical drivers of health (NMDOH) that shape health outcomes across the state. This shift reflects growing recognition that factors like food, housing, and transportation play a critical role in determining health and driving health care costs.
In the previous legislative session, Texas passed its first law (HB 1575) that specifically identifies NMDOH services as a strategy for improving the health of pregnant and postpartum women and their children.
In the current session, NMDOH approaches are gaining broader application, with two main policy themes emerging from the pending bills: Medicaid coverage for non-medical services and doula care.
Source: Texas Lawmakers Focus on Non-Medical Drivers of Health / Baker Institute