https://www.texastribune.org/about/staff/dan-keemahill/The latest news by Dan Keemahill.enMon, 13 Oct 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/10/13/texas-schools-vaccines-measles-delinquencies/In school districts and charter networks with the most vaccine delinquencies, as many as 44% of kindergarteners were not complying with state requirements.By Terri Langford, Data reporting by Dan KeemahillMon, 13 Oct 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/10/13/texas-schools-vaccines-measles-delinquencies/https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/21/texas-health-insurance-premiums-aca-tax-credit-expiration/Health insurers are hiking policy premiums in response to proposed federal cuts and rising costs in various parts of the health care sector.By Gabby Birenbaum, Data reporting by Dan Keemahill, Graphics by Edison WuThu, 21 Aug 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/21/texas-health-insurance-premiums-aca-tax-credit-expiration/Dr. Spencer R. Berthelsen visits with patient Francisco Garcia, a fellow physician, before his annual physical at their clinic in Sugar Land on Sept. 22, 2011.Dr. Spencer R. Berthelsen, M.D., Chairman, Board of Directors at Kelsey-Seybold, who still sees patients two days a week, visits with patient Francisco Garcia (also a doctor at Kelsey Seybold) before his annual physical at their clinic in Sugar Land. Sept. 22, 2011.Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/18/texas-school-vaccination-budget-cuts/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.By Terri Langford, Data reporting by Dan KeemahillMon, 18 Aug 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/18/texas-school-vaccination-budget-cuts/A nurse administers a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at a clinic organized by the Travis County Mobile Vaccine Collaborative at Rodriguez Elementary School on July 28, 2021.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.Sophie Park/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/15/texas-kratom-hemp-thc-opioid-drug/Texas law bans the sale of synthetic kratom, but it isn’t enforced. Earlier this year, legislation died in the Texas House to ban the natural plant, too.By Stephen Simpson, Data reporting by Dan KeemahillFri, 15 Aug 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/15/texas-kratom-hemp-thc-opioid-drug/A worker shifts a barrel of kratom inside the 1836 Kratom warehouse and headquarters in Pflugerville on Friday, Aug. 8, 2025. 1836 Kratom produces the natural form of Kratom, and owners Tiffani and Jeremy Steding caution against the use of synthetic kratom, often called 7-OH.A worker shifts a barrel of Kratom inside the 1836 Kratom warehouse and headquarters Friday, Aug. 8, 2025 in Pflugerville, TX. Kratom is shipped to the United States as a crushed powder and is distributed by 1836 Kratom into various consumption forms.Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/22/texas-marijuana-hemp-data-poison-control-overdose/Experts say poison control data don’t specify which calls are related to hemp versus more dangerous K2, but show that most THC poisonings cause minor side effects.By Stephen Simpson, Data reporting by Dan KeemahillTue, 22 Jul 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/22/texas-marijuana-hemp-data-poison-control-overdose/A container of dried hemp plant with leaves and stems, photographed on Jan. 23, 2020.A container of dried hemp plant with leaves and stems on Jan. 23, 2020.Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/10/texas-kerr-county-commissioners-flooding-warning/In the last nine years, federal funding for a system has been denied to the county as it contends with a tax base hostile to government overspending.By Terri Langford, Dan Keemahill and Hayden BettsThu, 10 Jul 2025 17:52:41 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/10/texas-kerr-county-commissioners-flooding-warning/Trees are bent around the pier of a bridge in Louise Hays Park in Kerrville on July 5, 2025, the day after cataclysmic floodwaters swept through Kerr County.Trees are bent around the pier of a bridge on Louise Hays Park in Kerrville on July 5, 2025.Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/05/01/texas-hispanics-covid-19-deaths/In the deadly summer of 2020, Hispanics in Texas were half of all COVID-19 deaths, spurring many to vaccinate. Today, in a startling flip, Hispanics make up less than a quarter of deaths from the disease.By Dan Keemahill, Terri Langford and Yuriko SchumacherThu, 01 May 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/05/01/texas-hispanics-covid-19-deaths/Delia Ramos and her children hold photos of husband and father Ricardo in Brownsville on March 7, 2021. Ricardo died from COVID-19 in July 2020.Delia Ramos, center, holds a photo of her and her husband Ricardo with her daughter, right, and son tk. Ricardo died in July 2020. Brownsville on March 7, 2021.Eddie Gaspar for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/04/02/texas-cypress-fairbanks-removed-textbook-chapters/The decision to strip chapters from books that had already won the approval of the state’s Republican-controlled board of education represents an escalation in how local school boards run by ideological conservatives influence what children learn.By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Dan Keemahill, The Texas TribuneWed, 02 Apr 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/04/02/texas-cypress-fairbanks-removed-textbook-chapters/The Cypress-Fairbanks school board has attracted community protests, including at this meeting in February, for its decisions regarding gender identity, its push for a biblical curriculum and the removal of chapters from state-approved textbooks.People are seen from behind as the sit in auditorium chairs and hold up signs, including one that says “Let trans kids grow up.” They are facing a row of eight people at a high table, six of whom are raising a hand.Danielle Villasana for ProPublica and The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/19/texas-school-boards-richardson-keller-at-large-voting-system/In six Texas districts that used at-large voting systems, ideologically driven groups successfully helped elect school board members who have moved aggressively to ban or remove educational materials that teach children about diversity.By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune, Photos by Shelby Tauber, for The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaWed, 19 Mar 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/19/texas-school-boards-richardson-keller-at-large-voting-system/Keller Independent School District’s Board of Trustees listens to public comment during a meeting on Dec. 19. Board members are elected using an at-large voting system that dilutes the power of voters of color, according to a lawsuit.Keller Independent School District’s Board of Trustees listens to public comment during a meeting on Dec. 19. Board members are elected using an at-large voting system that dilutes the power of voters of color, according to a lawsuit.Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune and ProPublicahttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/18/texas-covid-pandemic-readiness/Five years after Texas’ first COVID death, the state spends less on public health, vaccination rates have dropped and a distrust of authority has taken hold.By Terri Langford, Jayme Lozano Carver, Pooja Salhotra, Eleanor Klibanoff and Stephen Simpson, Graphics by Dan Keemahill and Yuriko SchumacherTue, 18 Mar 2025 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2025/03/18/texas-covid-pandemic-readiness/Illustration by Diana Branzan for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/14/texas-film-incentives-tax-credit/The Texas Senate has proposed injecting a staggering half a billion dollars into film production, as economists and fiscal hawks question the return on investment.By Pooja Salhotra and Dan KeemahillFri, 14 Feb 2025 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/02/14/texas-film-incentives-tax-credit/The Hope Floats ice cream shop in downtown Smithville, pictured on Feb. 6, 2025, is named after the 1998 Sandra Bullock romance filmed there.An ice cream shop in downtown Smithville, Texas on Feb. 6, 2025. The town is the main setting of Hope Floats, a popular 1998 romance film, and the shop is named after it.Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/30/texas-measles-vaccinations-schools/Two of the four cases are in Lubbock, which hasn’t seen a case in more than 20 years. Meanwhile, measles vaccination rates in Texas have fallen over the last four years.By Stephen Simpson, Dan Keemahill and Jayme Lozano CarverThu, 30 Jan 2025 14:25:46 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/30/texas-measles-vaccinations-schools/https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/27/texas-legislature-vaccine-mandate-bills/Emboldened by Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s nomination and disdain for pandemic-era mandates, skeptics are pushing for bills to make it easier to opt out of vaccines.By Terri Langford and Dan KeemahillMon, 27 Jan 2025 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/27/texas-legislature-vaccine-mandate-bills/A man carries a sign protesting Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate outside Houston Methodist Hospital in Baytown on June 7, 2021.A man carries a sign protesting Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate outside Houston Methodist Hospital in Baytown on June 7, 2021. Employees who chose not to inoculate themselves by the hospital's Monday deadline faced suspension without pay and job termination, a policy criticized by the protesters as unfair and unauthorized.Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/09/texas-summer-school-lunch-food-stamp/After the state missed the Jan. 1 deadline, lawmakers still have time to approve administrative costs before applying for $400 million in federal summer meal assistance.By Terri Langford and Dan KeemahillThu, 09 Jan 2025 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/09/texas-summer-school-lunch-food-stamp/Ector County school district employees serve lunch to Bonham Middle School students on Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.Ector County Independent School District employees serve lunch to Bonham Middle School students Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2024/12/04/trump-medicaid-cuts-texas-residents/State leaders have shown a decadeslong antipathy toward the health insurance program. If Trump makes severe reductions, it’s unlikely leaders would have the political will to make up any lost federal funds with state money, experts say.By Lomi Kriel and Jessica Priest, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, Data reporting by Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaWed, 04 Dec 2024 10:30:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2024/12/04/trump-medicaid-cuts-texas-residents/A hospital bedMaria Crane for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2024/11/06/donald-trump-near-sweep-texas-border-counties/The former president captured 55% of Latino voters in the state, according to exit polls. He also won 14 out of the 18 counties within 20 miles of the border, a number that doubled his 2020 performance in the Latino-majority region.By Jasper Scherer, Zach Despart and Berenice Garcia, The Texas Tribune, and Perla Trevizo and Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaWed, 06 Nov 2024 21:45:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2024/11/06/donald-trump-near-sweep-texas-border-counties/Democratic Val Verde County Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez, right, secured a fifth term in office with bipartisan support. The county tipped strongly for Donald Trump, reflecting a broader trend of Republican gains along the border.Gabriel Garza, left, augmentee with the sheriff’s office, congratulates, Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez, right, after the final vote counts for the night were announced around 10pm at Val Verde County Courthouse on election day on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Del Rio, Texas. Martinez was in the lead ahead of his opponent Rogelio “Roger” Hernandez 7,926 votes to 6,033.Salgu Wissmath for The Texas Tribune and ProPublicahttps://www.texastribune.org/2024/11/03/del-rio-texas-immigration-local-politics/Immigration is not part of Joe Frank Martinez’s job. But in Del Rio, like in other majority Latino communities across the country, the issue is high on voters’ minds and is disrupting long-standing political allegiances.By Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, Data reporting by Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, Photos by Gerardo del Valle, ProPublicaSun, 03 Nov 2024 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2024/11/03/del-rio-texas-immigration-local-politics/The memory of nearly 20,000 primarily Haitian immigrants arriving at the border is seared into the minds of Del Rio residents. Many fear it could happen again, making immigration one of the key issues in Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez’s race for reelection and disrupting local politics.The memory of nearly 20,000 primarily Haitian immigrants arriving at the border is seared into the minds of Del Rio residents. Many fear it could happen again, making immigration one of the key issues in Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez’s race for reelection and disrupting local politics.From left: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune, Liz Moughon/ProPublica, Gerardo del Valle/ProPublicahttps://www.texastribune.org/2024/10/11/texas-tarrant-county-tim-ohare-far-right/From cutting social services to changing election rules, Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare has pushed his agenda with an uncompromising approach.By Robert Downen, The Texas Tribune, and Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, Data reporting by Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, Story by Juan Salinas II, The Texas Tribune, and Jodi S. Cohen, ProPublicaFri, 11 Oct 2024 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2024/10/11/texas-tarrant-county-tim-ohare-far-right/Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare at a Commissioners Court meeting in Fort Worth on April 18, 2023Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare listens to Commissioner Roy Charles Brooks after Brooks tells the attendees of the meeting that O’Hare “broke the system” in Fort Worth on April 18, 2023. Following a conversation between O’Hare and Elections Administrator Heider Garcia, Garcia announced his resignation. O’Hare denied responsibility, saying “I did not ask Heider to resign. I did not put pressure on Heider to resign. I did not threaten to fire Heider, I did not threaten to bring him before the election commission for review to determine if he would keep his employment. He chose to resign on his own.”Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2024/06/21/greg-abbott-school-vouchers-GOP/Gov. Greg Abbott succeeded in his campaign against Republicans who defied him on school vouchers. Now he may finally get the votes he needs to pass a bill.By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, Data reporting by Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaFri, 21 Jun 2024 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2024/06/21/greg-abbott-school-vouchers-GOP/Gov. Greg Abbott discusses parent empowerment at Annapolis Christian Academy in Corpus Christi on Jan. 31, 2023.Gov. Greg Abbott discusses parent empowerment at Annapolis Christian Academy in Corpus Christi on Jan. 31, 2023.Blaine Young for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2024/05/15/texas-school-board-bond-elections/We want to hear about how heated elections affect the people learning, teaching and living in districts across Texas.By Jessica Priest, Jeremy Schwartz, Lexi Churchill and Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaWed, 15 May 2024 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2024/05/15/texas-school-board-bond-elections/A group that calls itself “pro public education” offers ballot suggestions outside a voting center in Granbury.Shelby Tauber for ProPublica and The Texas Tribune