The guidance comes in response to confusion over a new state law requiring schools to notify parents whenever students need health care services.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Friday called Abbott’s decision a pathway to full legalization of cannabis, including marijuana which is still federally illegal. Hemp-derived THC is legal.
The executive order comes after the Legislature ended a special session without the House, Senate and governor agreeing on restrictions.
Previously, parents had to wait for the state to mail them the exemption form. They still have to get the form notarized before submitting it to the school for enrollment purposes.
Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano, announced her passing Monday, calling her “one of the first and most effective fighters” for the anti-abortion movement.
High priority bills that propose banning THC have not moved through the Texas House, as the current overtime session could conclude in the coming days.
More than 75 Texas camps have met dozens of safety standards to become accredited by the American Camp Association, which can be a lengthy and costly process.
Senate Bill 8 restricts bathroom use in government buildings and schools to sex assigned at birth.
New laws range from school vouchers and water infrastructure funding to a ban on city and county-funded abortion travel funds.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. complimented Texas as Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law a prohibition on using state tax dollars on specific products with additives, among other measures.
Emails show how overwhelmed West Texas officials were as they asked CDC for guidance on how to respond to the explosive outbreak.
Health insurers are hiking policy premiums in response to proposed federal cuts and rising costs in various parts of the health care sector.
Senate Bill 1, which would require more oversight of emergency plans and evacuation procedures at summer camps, was advanced after the emotional hearing Wednesday.
Senators moved fast on Gov. Greg Abbott’s agenda for the second special session. With House Democrats back in Texas, bills can now move through that chamber.
Federal funding cuts to immunization efforts and a new law that allows exemption forms to be downloaded, instead of mailed, could drive up exemptions in the future.
Texas law bans the sale of synthetic kratom, but it isn’t enforced. Earlier this year, legislation died in the Texas House to ban the natural plant, too.
Crime lab officials told lawmakers Wednesday they are struggling to keep up with deadlier drugs like fentanyl and a THC ban or new regulations would add to the challenge.
Two youth camp owners told lawmakers more layered disaster plans would create critical backstops and improve communication with first responders.
Senate Bill 7 would require people to use restrooms that match their birth gender and fine institutions up to $25,000 for repeated violations.
Competing legislative priorities and an industry that has pushed against certain regulations could challenge a suite of camp safety bills this special legislative session.
As lawmakers continue to debate banning hemp-derived THC, some rural Texans say it helps ease addiction, health concerns and economic woes that hit their communities the hardest.
Texas clinics, in particular, are worried about their ability to meet patient needs once people begin losing insurance under changes from Republicans’ recent megabill.
Faced with a skeptical religious community that became the center of the outbreak, public health officials say they may have pushed too hard on vaccine messaging.
Senate Bill 5 would ban products containing any detectable amount of any cannabinoid, creating criminal offenses for possession of hemp-derived THC.
While the state says undocumented patients cost hospitals $329 million over three months, critics say the data lacks payment information and more context.
The package includes $13.5 billion to reimburse states for border spending. It is expected to meet resistance in the House from some Texas Republicans.
A North Texas man charged with capital murder after slipping mifepristone into his girlfriend’s food signals another attempt to rein in abortion pills.
Although Patrick and hemp industry leaders have quarreled over the risks and benefits of THC, cannabis researchers say it can be addictive but doesn’t usually cause widespread psychosis or brain damage.
Texas and other states have criticized a decision by the national psychologist licensing board to add another expensive test in order for psychologists to become certified.
Hemp industry leaders say they agree with regulations similar to how the state regulates alcohol.
Abbott cited uncertainty over federal funding of the program as his reason for rejecting the state’s participation.
More than 3 million people call rural Texas home, and many lack access to a primary care doctor.
A federal judge determined the state illegally institutionalized severely disabled people for decades, often in poorly run facilities.
State chapters of the nonprofit group that provide meals to seniors are waiting to hear from Washington how much of a hit their battered budgets will take.
The court split 6-3 along ideological lines on a case from Tennessee. About two dozen states have similar bans in place.
Texas hemp users stockpile products and consider moving out of state as ban looms, saying the medical marijuana program is currently an untenable alternative.
Lawmakers have approved funding clinical trials for ibogaine as a treatment for addiction and brain trauma. It comes as Texas contemplates banning THC.
The facility will bring mental health resources closer to the largely rural region that’s home to nearly 436,000 people.
Two years after Stephanie Muth became Department of Family and Protective Services commissioner, staff turnover is down and the number of children without a placement has dropped.
The program would give low income families an extra $120 per child for summer lunches, but federal debate about food benefits could endanger the program.
Texas passed sweeping changes to cannabis policy, including expanding the medical marijuana program and banning hemp products, while also boosting psychedelics research.
The Legislature wrapped up without the same drama that defined the end of the last two sessions, with state GOP leaders checking off nearly everything on their to-do lists.
Texas is poised to lead the country in an initiative to inform denizens of what’s in their food. Food industry experts say it’s going too far.
A boost in public school spending, school vouchers, and money for water systems are other highlights of the state budget, which was bolstered by a $24 billion surplus.
Many trans Texans have changed the sex listed on their birth certificate, driver’s licenses and other documents. They say their identities will be invalidated under bill headed to governor's desk.
House Bill 46, which awaits Gov. Greg Abbott’s approval, would include more patients with chronic pain and allow for prescribed vaporized and aerosol products, such as vapes.
The House made changes to the proposal that leave open ways for victims to be compensated beyond medical bills.
The governor has not addressed whether he supports the ban, as hemp industry leaders have urged him to veto Senate Bill 3.
Instead of waiting for the state to send them one, parents would be able to print out vaccine exemption forms at home if they want to skip school-required shots. Critics believe the bill would increase infections.
Many low-income families would see cuts in health care and food benefits. The state hopes for a big reimbursement for border security spending.
A bill that would make it illegal to sell THC products could soon head over to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk. For a cannabis store employee, lawmakers don't know enough about the industry they're trying to shut down.
The bill, which is poised to become law, creates up to a $250,000 fine for medical professionals who change a patients’ listed sex outside of certain exemptions.
Lawyers representing foster children asked the high court to reinstate a contempt order against the state, and the judge who issued it.
Some measures that made it through before midnight dealt with jail bonds, an unconstitutional ban on gay sex, and the liability of vaccine manufacturers.
Texas’ governor joins other Republican governors making similar requests to ban purchases of candy and soda through the SNAP program.
It is unclear whether the House bill could come back as an amendment to another measure before the legislative session ends June 2.
The bill contains many provisions legal experts say are likely unconstitutional, including one that says it can’t be challenged in state court.
If it becomes law, the bill would define sex based on reproductive organs and require state documents and policies to comply with that framework.
Opponents fear that fentanyl test strips will increase the usage of the deadly drug.
The bill would allow a vaccine exemption form to be downloadable. Currently, a form must be requested from the state and mailed to the recipient.
In the deadly summer of 2020, Hispanics in Texas were half of all COVID-19 deaths, spurring many to vaccinate. Today, in a startling flip, Hispanics make up less than a quarter of deaths from the disease.
During a visit to College Station, the U.S. health secretary said Europe has a worse track record with the virus, which gets too much media attention.
Students are concerned the legislation could silence supportive teachers, dismantle safe spaces, lead to overenforcement and prevent honest conversations about identity.
Policy experts say undocumented immigrants' cost to hospitals is a small fraction of the total cost from uninsured Texans.
Some Republicans have bristled at the hefty cost of the bill, and Democrats could reject the funding for it over the school voucher dispute.
The revised bill, which seeks to clarify when a doctor can perform medically necessary abortions, aims to address concerns from abortion advocates and conservative groups.
A state employee testified Monday that tens of thousands of people in the U.S. unlawfully were treated, but it was unclear how long the data had been collected.
The Senate voted Wednesday to give initial approval to a bill that would require buildings, including public schools and universities, among others to segregate private facilities, like bathrooms, by sex.
