After reforming Texas Medical Board, newly-elected member of Congress eyes health care transparency

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A newly-elected member of Congress — whose bipartisan bill-turned-law reformed the Texas Medical Board in 2023 in direct response to a KXAN investigation — previously said she wants to look into expanding patient protections on a national level.

“I’m sure that you and I can partner together just like we did with the [Texas] Medical Board (TMB),” Congresswoman-elect Julie Johnson told KXAN investigative reporter Matt Grant after announcing her bid for Congress. “Let’s see what we can get done.”

Johnson won her election on Tuesday. …

‘Deep dive’ into patient transparency

Johnson’s bipartisan bill was sponsored by Republican Sen. Bob Hall of Edgewood. After it passed, she told KXAN it “will absolutely save lives.” Reflecting back on how quickly she was able to enact major reform, Johnson said HB 1998 was “absolutely” one of her proudest accomplishments.

The new law not only gives patients more transparency to make informed health care decisions but also gives the TMB “stronger teeth in order to weed out bad doctors,” she said.

Congresswoman-Elect Julie Johnson spoke with KXAN about her goals after announcing her run for Congress. (KXAN Photo/Matt Grant)

A lawyer, now making history as the first member of the LGBTQ+ community to be elected to Congress from the U.S. South, Johnson said she “of course” wants to take a “deep dive” into the NPDB — something she couldn’t do as a member of the Texas Legislature. The Data Bank acts as a confidential clearinghouse for all physician complaints. It was established by Congress in 1986 and is sealed to the public.

In 2022, eight members of Congress declined to talk to KXAN about the NPDB or didn’t respond to our request for comment. The executive director of the Center for Justice and Democracy at New York Law School said it would be “a long time” before Congress takes up patient access to medical malpractice records.