Texas Legislature approves bill making ivermectin an over-the-counter drug
Some people use the drug to treat COVID, even though it’s not approved by the FDA for such use. The bill now awaits the governor’s signature. Full Story
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Terri Langford is the Tribune's health services reporter based in Austin. Langford is a veteran journalist, having worked at the Florida Times Union, The Associated Press, The Dallas Morning News, the Houston Chronicle, WNYC, Honolulu Civil Beat and Texas Standard/KUT. Langford has a bachelor’s degree in government from the University of Texas at Austin. She has covered various city and state agencies, criminal justice and health and human services for the Houston Chronicle, The Dallas Morning News, The Associated Press, WNYC and Texas Standard at KUT.
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![A box of Ivermectine drug in a pharmacy in Paris, France on April 16, 2021.]()
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Proposed legislation would levy stricter penalties on Texas camps following the Hill Country flood
HB 256 would prevent camps from correcting violations on the spot to avoid state penalties and reduce the number of camps serving on a state panel to a maximum of two. Full Story
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![Campists' belongings lie on the ground following flooding on the Guadalupe River, at Camp Mystic, Hunt, on July 7, 2025.]()
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Bill that would expand abortion pill restrictions gets OK in Texas House
With the lower chamber’s final approval, House Bill 7, which would allow people to sue manufacturers and distributors of the drug, heads to the Senate. Full Story
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![A bottle and pills of Misoprostol, made by Lupin Pharmaceuticals, sit in a counting tray at a pharmacy on June 19, 2019, in Provo, Utah.]()
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“My daughter was stolen from me": Grieving parents point to Texas camp failures at Capitol hearing
Senate Bill 1, which would require more oversight of emergency plans and evacuation procedures at summer camps, was advanced after the emotional hearing Wednesday. Full Story
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![Cici Williams Steward, mother of Cile Steward, who died in the Camp Mystic flood, gets up after testifying during a panel of Camp Mystic parents testifying before the Senate Select Committee on Disaster Preparedness and Flooding on August 20, 2025. Cile is the only child whose body has still not been recovered.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
State health officials declare West Texas measles outbreak over
With no new cases reported in 42 days, the nation’s largest measles outbreak in 30 years, is declared over. Full Story
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![Patient blood samples seen on May 1, 2025 that are ready for testing at the Texas Department of State Health Services Laboratory.]()
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Vaccine exemption requests in Texas spike in July, as some experts fear more families will opt out
Federal funding cuts to immunization efforts and a new law that allows exemption forms to be downloaded, instead of mailed, could drive up exemptions in the future. Full Story
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![A nurse administers a dose of the Pfizer vaccine at a clinic organized by the Travis County Mobile Vaccine Collaborative at Rodriguez Elementary School on July 28, 2021.]()
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Texas youth camps tell lawmakers they need better coordination, emergency plans during disasters
Two youth camp owners told lawmakers more layered disaster plans would create critical backstops and improve communication with first responders. Full Story
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![Committee Chair Will Metcalf R-Conroe speak with Stephen Baskin, onwer of Camp Champions and Meg Clark, owner of Camp Waldemar during a committee hearing Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2025 in Austin, Texas.]()
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Texas bills increasing youth camp safety face long odds, even after Hill Country floods
Competing legislative priorities and an industry that has pushed against certain regulations could challenge a suite of camp safety bills this special legislative session. Full Story
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![Texas game wardens search the area across the river from Camp Mystic on July 5, 2025.]()
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Kerr County officials failed to follow certain aspects of disaster plan during Texas floods
The five-year-old plan, required by the state, detailed when additional monitoring was to take place and who was responsible for alerting the public to evacuate. Full Story
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![A woman looks at a pile of debris in Hunt on July 8, 2025.]()
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Better testing, less vaccine messaging among lessons learned from historic Texas measles outbreak
Faced with a skeptical religious community that became the center of the outbreak, public health officials say they may have pushed too hard on vaccine messaging. Full Story
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![Signs inform people of measles prevention and testing at the Gaines County Court House in Seminole on Sunday on April 6, 2025.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune