Resilience, Results and Readiness: Extending 2025’s Impact for Texas Hospitals

For the Texas Hospital Association and hospitals across Texas, 2025 was a year defined by extraordinary challenges – and meaningful progress. From the transition to a new federal administration to a demanding session of the Texas Legislature, hospitals navigated a rapidly shifting policy landscape while continuing to meet growing patient needs. Public health scares and natural disasters impacted communities across the state, multiple special sessions extended legislative uncertainty and the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history created significant operational and financial pressures.

Through it all, Texas hospitals remained resilient and united in their mission, representing more than 600 Texas hospitals. THA worked alongside its members to ensure hospitals had the resources, advocacy and support needed to continue delivering lifesaving care and strengthen the health of their communities.

2025 Year In Review - Texas Hospital Association

Year in Review: 2025 Annual Report

Check out THA’s 2025 Annual Report for a closer look at all of the challenges and triumphs for hospitals last year.

Advocacy That Delivers Results

With nearly 2,000 health care-related bills tracked during the legislative session, THA’s advocacy team worked across multiple fronts to protect patient access to care, preserve critical funding and advance policies that support hospital sustainability.

A key legislative priority was clarifying medical emergency protections in Texas law. THA partnered with the Texas Medical Association to help guide passage of Senate Bill 31, the Life of the Mother Act, which clarified the medical emergency exception to the state’s abortion ban and provided physicians greater certainty when delivering lifesaving care.

THA also achieved major wins supporting rural health care access. Lawmakers approved legislation establishing the State Office of Rural Hospital Finance, a Financial Stabilization Grant Program for rural facilities and a Rural Pediatric Mental Health Care Access program. Advocacy efforts helped maintain critical funding in the state’s 2026-27 budget, including increased Medicaid payment rates for rural hospitals and additional support for rural OB-GYN services.

Equally important were efforts to stop harmful proposals. THA successfully opposed legislation that would have restricted hospital facility fees, weakened vaccine protections or imposed burdensome requirements that could limit access to care. At the federal level, THA protected Texas’ Medicaid financing structure during high-stakes budget negotiations and helped delay years of significant Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) payment cuts – helping set the stage for Congress to eventually erase much of that future DSH cut burden earlier this month. And a major legal victory further reinforced hospital stability when a federal district court ruled in favor of the state of Texas in a critical Medicaid financing case.

Together, these efforts strengthened the policy environment for hospitals and ensured providers could continue serving patients in an increasingly complex landscape.

Advancing Quality and Patient Safety

Even amid external pressures, Texas hospitals continued to advance clinical quality and patient safety. THA’s clinical initiatives team partnered with hospitals statewide to drive data-informed improvement, expand peer review services and provide targeted education to frontline providers.

Hospitals pushed for progress through initiatives such as the Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Program (MBQIP). An overwhelming majority of Texas critical access hospitals – f 96% – engaged in MBQIP educational programming, reflecting a strong commitment to improving outcomes and patient safety. THA’s Patient Safety Organization supported 81 affiliated providers and collected more than 77,000 safety event records for analysis and benchmarking, strengthening accountability and fostering continuous improvement.

These efforts helped hospitals enhance care delivery, improve outcomes and maintain high standards of safety for patients across Texas.

Informing, Mobilizing and Supporting Hospitals

In a rapidly evolving environment, timely communication was essential. THA provided hospitals with critical information on legislative, regulatory and public health developments through policy alerts, white papers, digital platforms and thought leadership initiatives. By delivering clear analysis of complex issues and amplifying hospitals’ voices, THA ensured leaders across the state remained informed, prepared and empowered to respond to emerging challenges.

Building Momentum for 2026 and Beyond

As Texas hospitals continue to push through 2026, THA is building on the momentum of the past year and using the interim period to prepare for the 2027 legislative session. Priorities include strengthening relationships with policymakers, refining policy strategies, expanding data and research initiatives, and continuing to support hospitals through education, advocacy and quality improvement programs.

The challenges of 2025 tested Texas hospitals in unprecedented ways. They also demonstrated the strength of a unified industry committed to improving health and saving lives. Through collaboration, innovation and steadfast advocacy, Texas hospitals not only weathered a difficult year, but positioned themselves for continued progress and a stronger, healthier future for all Texans.