TAHU Updates from the Capitol August 24, 2020

TAHU Seeks Feedback on COVID-19 Testing, Treatments, Price-Gouging and Surprise Billing Texas lawmakers are seeking information about Texans’ healthcare experiences with the pandemic, namely COVID-19 testing, treatment, price-gouging, surprise medical billing, and the potential effects on health insurance premiums and the marketplace. TAHU has put together this survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TAHUCOVID. We’re gathering feedback from TAHU members and clients, allowing TAHU’s Legislative Council to provide comments to the House Insurance Committee and House Select Committee on Statewide Health Care Costs. If you have feedback to share, please complete this survey by the close of business on Friday, August 28th. Thanks in advance!

Disaster Declaration for Hurricanes Marco & Laura  With two storms gaining strength in the Gulf of Mexico, Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday declared a state of disaster for 23 counties and requested assistance from the federal government. Hurricane Marco is expected to make landfall in Louisiana on Monday before moving into East Texas, with forecasters expecting sustained winds of 75 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service. Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Laura is expected to advance into the central Gulf Coast late Tuesday, when the storm could strengthen into a hurricane. If the storms land as expected, the could mark the second significant disaster during the 2020 hurricane season in Texas, following Hurricane Hanna dumping more that 15 inches of rain on South Texas in late July.

SD 30 Special Election On Sunday, Gov. Greg Abbott announced the special election to replace state Sen. Pat Fallon (R-Prosper) will be Sept. 29th, setting off a sped-up race to fill his seat ahead of the next legislative session now that he is likely headed to Congress. Minutes after Abbott's announcement, state Rep. Drew Springer (R-Muenster) announced his campaign for the safely red seat in Senate District 30. Springer also said he had Fallon's endorsement.  The filing deadline for the special election will be less than a week away — Friday — and early voting begins Sept. 14th, according to Abbott's proclamation. Abbott invoked what is known as an "emergency special election" to schedule the contest on a tighter timeline than usual. He cited the need for SD-30 to have representation when the Legislature returns in January, particularly in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this month, county and precinct chairs selected Fallon to replace former U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Heath) on the fall ballot after Ratcliffe became the director of national intelligence. While Democrat Russell Foster is also on the ballot, Fallon is expected to win in November because the district is overwhelmingly Republican. Also announcing her candidacy Saturday, Shelley Luther: the Dallas salon owner who was jailed earlier this year over her refusal to shut down her business due to the pandemic. And it’s rumored that Denton Mayor Chris Watts may announce his candidacy today.  The timing of the special election had been up in the air in recent days because Fallon had not vacated the seat yet and said as recently as Wednesday he was still figuring out when to give it up. Fallon ended up resigning in a letter to Abbott dated Saturday, saying the resignation would be effective at midnight Jan. 4th. The winner of the special election will finish Fallon's term, which goes until January 2023. SD-30 covers an area of North Texas that wraps around the Dallas-Fort Worth area to the north — up to the Oklahoma border — and to the west, extending to Wichita Falls.

Questions? Contact your TAHU Lobbyists at:

Mike Meroney 512-499-8880 (office) 512-589-2531 (Mike’s mobile) Mike@MeroneyPublicAffairs.com Shannon Meroney 512-499-8880 (office) 512-731-6615 (Shannon’s mobile)  Shannon@MeroneyPublicAffairs.com