Texas Officials Press on Healthcare and Voter Registration Backlogs

Gina Ortiz Jones, Mayor of San Antonio, wrote to Governor Greg Abbott regarding two separate backlogs affecting services in Texas. The first involved Medicaid, where reports indicated that over 210,000 Texans were awaiting decisions on applications as of late August. Jones called on Abbott to dedicate state resources to address this issue, noting the delays occurred during an affordability crisis. Separately, Bexar County faced a backlog of over 45,000 voter registration applications and updates due to issues with the state's online driver’s license system.

The delays affect critical services for low-income families who rely on Medicaid as a lifeline. For Bexar County, the election administration backlog required staff to extend hours to process the applications before the October 5 registration deadline.