Sen. Schwertner tours BIS Clinic

On Wednesday, July 24, Texas State Senator Charles Schwertner, made two stops in Grimes County on a tour of his 10-county district, Senate District 5. Sen. Schwertner’s first stop was the B.I.S. Clinic in Bedias where he toured the certified rural health clinic and talked with clinic owner and operator Elizabeth Ellis, DNP, RN, FNP-BC, FAANP and with clinic patients.

B.I.S. which stands for “Bedias, Iola and Singleton,” opened its doors in September 2017. Approaching its second anniversary, Ellis said they have already treated 3,100 patients from more than 32 counties. Their client base comes from seven counties as far away as Houston County, but they serve patients from five counties on a regular basis. In addition, Ellis makes home visits.

Ellis told the senator that his support of H.B. 278 was “huge for us and will be a huge cost savings for us.”

Passed in the last legislative session, the bill will allow Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants to meet with clinic physicians through video chat effective Sept. 1. According to Ellis, previously, this meant closing the office and traveling for hours for face-to-face meetings.

Ellis said there are still major hurdles and barriers regarding reimbursement due to outdated legislation which reimburses independent RHCs below what it costs to deliver care and threatens the ability for independent RHCs to survive.

Patients Marvin and Rose Knapp who used to drive to Spring to see their family doctor, told Sen. Schwertner, “To have this here has been a Godsend, a blessing to us. And she loves her patients.”

The senator acknowledged that with 80% of the population living within the Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio triangle, it’s difficult to get professionals to move to smaller rural communities.

He said, “Things like telehealth, telemedicine, reimbursement rates, allowances regarding how certain types of providers who supervise have helped enhance the workforce.”

Updating the base

From Bedias, Sen. Schwertner made a scheduled stop at Juan & Linda’s Café in Anderson where he shared the highlights of the 87th legislative session with the two dozen-plus Republicans in attendance.

After a review of Senate Bills 1, 2 and 3 which are described as historic pieces of legislation related to property tax and education reform, Sen. Schwertner discussed other legislation that made it across the finish line. He reiterated his commitment to legislation related to high speed rail, eminent domain and the rights of property owners which did not pass in the last session, to the dismay of the Grimes County residents.

Other topics included immigration reform, sanctuary cities and an upcoming constitutional amendment to ensure that Texas will never have a state income tax.