By: Bobbie Kay Turkett, MS, CCC-SLP, Vice President for Social and Governmental Policy

By the time this article reaches you, many decisions as to who will be representing you in the Texas Legislature during the 88th Legislative Session, which convenes in January 2023, will have been made. We hope you cast your ballot to allow your voice to be heard and supported a candidate for the Texas Legislature who will support the mission and vision of the Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Association (TSHA).

More than 6,000 bills were filed during the 87^th Legislative Session in 2021. The TSHA Legislative Team closely followed more than 75 bills that could have directly affected or otherwise had relevance for speech-language pathologists and audiologists. TSHA worked on bills affecting the professions cooperatively with other professional organizations including the Texas Council of Administrators of Special Education (TCASE), Texas Academy of Audiology (TAA), Texas Classroom Teachers Association (TCTA), Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), and Texas Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

In 2023, TSHA will continue to monitor bills being filed that affect the professions, and we encourage you to monitor bills as well. Please inform the legislative team of concerns you may have regarding bills that may affect the professions.

TSHA Legislative Agenda
TSHA has a robust membership of speech-language pathologists and audiologists, and it is the recognized authority on the delivery of life-changing therapies to consumers with communication disorders throughout the state of Texas. TSHA is committed to shaping governmental policies and practices in order to promote the highest quality of life-changing care for individuals with communication and its related disorders.

Regulatory Focus Issues

• Address regulations within the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) and the Texas Department of Health and Human Services (HHSC) to ensure the scope of practice of speech-language pathologists (SLPs), audiologists, and other entities are adhered to in the diagnosis and treatment of children and adults with communication and its related disorders
• Ensure that scientifically based definitions of evidence-based practice (EBP) are utilized in the individual education and healthcare planning and provision of services to persons with communication and its related disorders by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), TDLR, and HHSC
• Work with the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) and HHSC to develop equitable funding formulas and universal contracts for SLPs and audiologists providing services in Texas
• Address encroachment issues, particularly related to services for individuals with dyslexia and those on the autism spectrum

Legislative Session Preparation

• Legislation that ensures that the TDLR Advisory Committee for Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology is empowered to protect the public by the efficient and effective regulation of the professions
• Legislation that protects consumers who have communication disorders
• Legislation that ensures speech-language pathologists and audiologists provide the highest quality evaluation, habilitation, and rehabilitation services
• Legislation and regulation that addresses encroachment on the scope of practice of speech-language pathologists and audiologists
• Legislation that should or does include speech-language pathologists and audiologists in any public school funding bill that will increase salaries for teachers and other professional staff
• Legislation that promotes funding for public education as necessary to provide students with an adequate and equitable education; TSHA also supports increased funding for higher education
• Legislation ensuring existing state public education dollars are not reduced and/or redirected (e.g., to private and/or charter schools)
• Legislation that addresses efforts to streamline and reduce duplication of paperwork requirements, thereby increasing the availability of time for delivery of direct services to students
• Legislation that enhances state funding for the Texas Medicaid program to stabilize provider reimbursement rates across all provider work settings
• Legislation that mandates improved coverage for speech, language, hearing, and balance disorders through public and private insurers for habilitative and rehabilitative services

We are looking forward to the TSHA Annual Convention in Austin, during which we will have a Capitol Visit Day event. The legislative team encourages members to participate in order to advocate for your professions. This is your opportunity to let state lawmakers know in person that you support services for Texans with communication disorders and laws that would ensure speech-language pathologists and audiologists maintain the highest professional standards.

During the Capitol Visit Day, you will be a voice for the professions and consumers with communication disorders!

TSHA Capitol Visit Day provides audiology and speech-language pathology advocates with a structured, comfortable setting in which to meet their elected officials. We will organize and help prepare you for these meetings with insider tips and an overview of pending or upcoming legislation that directly impacts the professions and consumers. This is your chance to join with colleagues and make a difference at the Capitol and with your legislators. This biennial event is critical to our advocacy efforts, is a great networking activity, and is invigorating, inspiring, and very personally rewarding.

Finally, be on the lookout for Capitol Watch, which is the TSHA Legislative Team’s vehicle for keeping members informed of activity at the state capitol and in other state regulatory meetings.

If you have questions regarding legislative issues, please contact a member of the TSHA Legislative Team: Vice President for Social and Governmental Affairs Bobbie Kay Turkett (government@txsha.org), Legal and Legislative Counsel Mark Hanna, and Director of Governmental Relations Larry Higdon (lwhtsha@gmail.com).

More Executive Board News

• The current TSHA budget is available for review upon request.