Castro, Casar, Crockett, Doggett, Garcia, Menefee, Escobar, Green, Johnson, Veasey, Fletcher Demand Turnaround Of Massive Medicaid Backlog Formed Under Abbott
Red Tape From So-Called “One Big Beautiful Bill” Contributed To Massive Backlog
Law Slashed $1 Trillion From Medicaid
WASHINGTON, DC — Representative Joaquin Castro (TX-20), alongside Representatives Greg Casar (TX-35), Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), Lloyd Doggett (TX-37), Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), Christian Menefee (TX-18), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Al Green (TX-9), Julie Johnson (TX-32), Marc Veasey (TX-33), and Lizzie Fletcher (TX-7) sent a letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Texas Health and Human Services Commissioner (HHSC) Stephanie Muth demanding a turnaround to the massive Medicaid backlog in Texas that formed under Governor Greg Abbott that ballooned since January 2026. The members demanded an investigation, including an evaluation of contracted vendors, and federal intervention if the backlog was not adequately addressed. The members also urged the HHSC Commissioner Stephanie Muth to request funding from the Texas Economic Stabilization Fund to reduce the backlog.
In the letter to HHSC Commissioner Stephanie Muth, the members underscored the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s (OBBBA) impact on Texas’ ballooning Medicaid and SNAP backlog, writing, “Since the passage of [(OBBBA)], over 635,000 Texans have lost SNAP food benefits, over 280,000 Texans have lost Medicaid, and over 850,000 Texans did not activate the Marketplace health insurance plans that became too expensive after Congressional Republicans failed to pass an extension of Marketplace enhanced premium tax credits….Yet despite this critical need, Texas is now facing an unprecedented surge in unprocessed benefits applications. According to recent reports, Texas’ Medicaid application backlog rose from 1,671 pending applications in January 2026 to a staggering 237,505 in early September 2026. At the same time, the SNAP application backlog rose from approximately 3,700 pending applications in January 2026 to more than 175,000 in early September 2026.”
In the letter to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the members shared examples of real-life harm caused by delays stemming from the massive uptick in the state’s Medicaid backlog, writing, “Nearly four million Texans are currently enrolled in Medicaid. These families rely on Medicaid to access primary care, prenatal services, medications, and lifesaving treatments. Long delays disproportionately harm children, pregnant women, seniors, and Texans with disabilities. For four months, one Texan woman received no update from HHSC on her Medicaid for Pregnant Women application—a program that would have helped her afford essential prenatal care like ultrasounds and checkups earlier in her pregnancy.”
In the letter to Secretary Kennedy, the members continued by attributing OBBBA red tape to the delays and errors that prevent eligible people from accessing benefits, writing, “Recent federal provisions enacted in Public Law 119-21, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), have exacerbated Texas’ administrative bottlenecks and placed strain on HHSC’s already overwhelmed and mismanaged system….Since Texas HHSC uses an integrated application across human services programs like Medicaid, SNAP, and Medicare Savings Programs, infrastructural changes to one program can lead to technical errors across programs. Those technical errors can wrongly end a recipient’s coverage across programs, stripping people of the benefits they rely on.”
The members requested a response by November 30, 2026. To read the letters to Secretary Kennedy and Commissioner Muth, click here and here.
“We are in a cost-of-living crisis and Republicans in Washington and Texas don’t seem to care,” said Congressman Castro. “Texas’ staggering backlog in Medicaid and SNAP applications threatens to push more families into poverty. We must work to reverse the backlog, restore funding and help families in need see their doctor and put food on the table.”
“Nearly two years after Donald Trump promised to lower costs on day one, working families are draining their savings and taking on debt just to see a doctor or put food on the table,” said Congressman Greg Casar. “Now Texans are stuck in a dangerous backlog of SNAP and Medicaid applications. Donald Trump and Greg Abbott must clear it now, before more families go without care or go hungry.”
“Too many families wait months for food assistance and access to a family physician as Greg Abbott continues failing to meet federal requirements and violates a SNAP corrective action plan I secured. Republican indifference is harming our most vulnerable—children, pregnant women, seniors, and disabled individuals,” said Congressman Doggett. “Greater transparency into this crisis is urgently needed as Governor-elect Hinojosa and a new Democratic state house majority works to clean up Abbott’s mess.”
“Trump and Abbott have turned their backs on Texas families,” said Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia. “First, they slashed Medicaid and food assistance. Now, hundreds of thousands of Texans are stuck waiting for the health care and food assistance they desperately need. No parent should have to worry about getting their child to the doctor or putting food on the table because their government cannot do its job. This is not just incompetence. It is cruelty. Abbott must commit the resources to clear these backlogs, and the Trump Administration must make sure Texans get the benefits they are entitled to. Our families cannot afford to wait.”
“Texas's 18th Congressional District has one of the highest concentrations of SNAP recipients in the state, yet families are going hungry and suffering without access to proper healthcare because of massive backlogs in Medicaid and SNAP applications brought on by Abbott and Trump,” said Congressman Menefee. “Folks are legally entitled to these benefits, yet Republicans remain hell-bent on withholding them from our most vulnerable communities.”
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
The Medicaid backlog rose from 1,671 applications in January 2026 to 237,505 by early September 2026. In July, Texas processed 65% of Medicaid applications on time, down from 81% last year. The OBBBA cuts $1 trillion in Medicaid funding over ten years. The number of people participating in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in Texas dropped by about 247,317 between September 2025 and July 2026.
The members, in addition to Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34) and Henry Cuellar (TX-28), sent a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke L. Rollins demanding the turnaround of a massive backlog in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applications.
To learn more, click here.
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