Texas Health Institute

04/06/2026

Today marks the beginning of National Public Health Week! THI recognizes the critical role public health plays in promoting healthy communities, disease prevention, and improving health access, all grounded in data, insights, and shared learning. Across Texas, communities, practitioners, and leaders are working together to navigate complex health challenges and strengthen the systems that support population health. This week, we reflect on the people, partnerships, and strategies that help communities thrive and advance the health of all.

04/03/2026

Dana Minney, EdD, and Brianna Tofel, MPH, represented THI at the 10th Annual Texas Evaluators Network (TEN) Institute, a full-day convening with learning, connection, and insight under the theme: Curiosity in Action: Asking Better Questions for a Complex World.

Dana and Bri co-presented "Mapping Your Program's Path: Using Logic Models to Build Buy-in and Chart Measures that Matter." Dana also joined a panel discussion, "Curious Connections: A Multi-Sector Dialogue on Evaluation in Complex Systems." And Bri presented "When Plans Meet Reality: The Scroll Studio Experiment in Flexible Evaluation Design."

We're grateful for the opportunity to contribute to conversations shaping the future of evaluation in Texas and beyond.

04/01/2026

Oral health is often treated separately from the rest of the health system, but its impact is deeply connected to children’s overall well-being.

In Whole-Child Health Starts Here: The Power of Oral Health, experts discussed how integrating oral health into child health systems, expanding prevention, and strengthening collaboration across sectors can improve outcomes for children across Texas.

Watch the full webinar:

As we launch the renewed Texas Oral Health Coalition, we are reimagining the role of oral health in strengthening the health, development, and long-term oppo...

03/31/2026

Community Health Workers (CHWs) are increasingly recognized as essential to community-centered care, and new reimbursement opportunities are helping accelerate that momentum across Texas.
As organizations explore how to scale and sustain CHW models, one theme is clear: reimbursement is only part of the equation. The latest Texas Health Lens examines why long-term success depends on the infrastructure that supports the workforce. https://texashealthinstitute.org/texas-health-lens-community-health-workers-billing-and-infrastructure/

03/23/2026

Community Health Professionals are trusted advisors to health systems and communities. The Responsive Trust Network (RTN) builds on that lived trust with a structured, ethical framework to partner with CHWs, doulas, peer specialists, promotores, and others to strengthen research, care delivery, and health system design.
Read more about how the RTN turns community trust into health system capacity:
https://texashealthinstitute.org/the-responsive-trust-network-turning-community-trust-into-health-system-capacity/

03/20/2026

On World Oral Health Day, we recognize that oral health is essential to overall health, shaping our ability to learn, work, and thrive. At THI, our mission is to advance the health of all, and that includes strengthening oral health across Texas. Through the Texas Oral Health Coalition, Inc, we work to improve oral health to advance the health of all Texans.

Learn more about our work: txohc.org

03/16/2026

Meet THI Executive Committee member, George T. Roberts, Jr., FACHE!

With more than 30 years of health care leadership experience, Roberts has dedicated his career to strengthening public health systems and expanding access to care across Texas. His work has spanned hospital administration, regional health system leadership, and community-focused health initiatives.

Throughout his career, he has championed disease prevention, emergency preparedness, workforce development, and innovative strategies that improve health outcomes.

His leadership reflects a deep commitment to building healthier communities through connection, collaboration, and public health innovation statewide.

03/10/2026

Leaders and partners from across the state came together to advance solutions for maternal health in rural Texas.

The Rural Texas Maternal Health Assembly, co-convened by Texas A&M Rural and Community Health Institute, Texas Health Institute, Texas Organization of Rural & Community Hospitals, Texas Academy of Family Physicians, and Texas Association of Community Health Centers (TACHC), brought together partners committed to advancing the Rural Maternal Health Rescue Plan, a shared framework for strengthening care in rural communities.

As the state prepares for the 90th Texas Legislature, participants are continuing to work together to refine priorities and advance practical solutions that improve maternal health outcomes across rural Texas.

03/09/2026

Early coverage trends can reveal important signals about the future of primary care access and affordability.

In the Texas Primary Care Consortium webinar, Coverage and Primary Care in 2026: Early Insights and Impacts, panelists discussed how changing coverage patterns, rising premiums, and evolving insurance models may shape access to care, financial pressures on providers, and the broader primary care landscape across Texas.

Watch the full discussion: https://youtu.be/oUrb2DVV5QU?si=-OEJRPBsTP9csigF

As open enrollment unfolds, early 2026 coverage trends are emerging. They offer the first real glimpse into how the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) and fe...

03/06/2026

“Texas continues to face meaningful challenges in healthcare access and affordability. That reality shapes both childhood prevention and adult chronic disease outcomes.”

In the latest Texas Health Lens, THI’s executive director, Ankit Sanghavi, MPH, BDS, explores how those challenges become visible in both heart disease and children’s oral health, illuminating structural patterns in Texas’ health system, particularly how uneven prevention allows risk to accumulate and costs to concentrate downstream. Drawing on recent state data and system design insights, he examines what it would mean to embed prevention as core infrastructure rather than layering it on after disease has advanced.

Read more: https://texashealthinstitute.org/texas-health-lens-heart-health-oral-health-and-the-system/

03/04/2026

Oral health is deeply connected with overall health, affecting everything from how we eat and speak to job opportunities and chronic disease prevention. Yet too many Texans still face barriers to care. The 2026 Texas Oral Health Coalition, Inc Summit will bring together leaders, providers, advocates, researchers, community partners, and more who are committed to advancing oral health for all Texans. Healthy communities start with connection, join TxOHC in connecting ideas to action and improving oral health across the state.

Register today: https://bit.ly/txohc26

03/02/2026

The THI board had the privilege of being hosted at Cook Children's Las Vegas Trail Neighborhood Health Center in Fort Worth, TX. The center is more than a medical facility; it serves as a one-stop shop community hub.

During our visit, we toured the center and saw firsthand the impact they are making in partnership with their community, through services ranging from primary pediatric and family health care to mental health support, nutrition education, job training, and community classes.

We are grateful to Cook Children's Health Care System for their hospitality and for providing the opportunity to hold our board meeting in a space deeply rooted in community impact.