TMA Recommendations
• Actively involve patients in the health care decisionmaking process.
• Promote participation in smoking cessation programs, worksite wellness, and routine screenings.
• Provide incentives via merit grants that recognize those state agencies that are promoting productive worksite wellness efforts.
• Continue full funding for the Texas Women’s Health Program.
• Streamline efforts to vaccinate people who work with high-risk populations.
• Support statutory changes that allow parents of Texas schoolchildren access to data specific to the schools their children attend regarding the number of conscientious objector claims to vaccination.
• Improve access to vaccinations, including improvements in the state’s Vaccines for Children Program and the adult safety net programs; this will ensure uninsured and low-income persons can get appropriate vaccinations.
• Keep public health disease surveillance systems robust.
• Increase funding for improving access to healthy foods; increase access to parks and recreational facilities; and promote worksite wellness policies.
• Improve the health of Texas students by increasing physical activity and reducing barriers to student participation in safe school sport activities.
• Promote physician participation in school health advisory committees and other public health prevention programs. Support legislation that requires inclusion of a primary care physician on all school health advisory committees.
• Require Texans who smoke and communities that allow it in public venues to fund an increasing portion of health care costs related to smoking-related illnesses.
• Adequately fund proven interventions to reduce tobacco use, such as Texas’ Quitline and education in schools.
• Provide smoking cessation benefit coverage for state employees and retired teachers.
• Support legislation that would require public workplaces, venues, and restaurants to have an indoor smoke-free policy.
72 TEXAS MEDICINE November 2012
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