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In Texas, health advocates often find themselves playing defense to encourage leaders to preserve the state’s relatively frugal public service offerings while also pushing for more.

That’s why a $300 million ask to lawmakers next year from the state’s notoriously tight-lipped social services agency — the Texas Health and Human Services Commission — to improve the agency’s complicated Medicaid application process has thrilled the state’s nonprofit policy groups.

If granted, it could mean more than 1,000 new workers and millions spent upgrading a decades-old computer system to make it easier for Texans to apply for Medicaid health insurance for adults and children, food stamps and other programs.

This move could allow vulnerable Texans to be enrolled in these critical programs in weeks rather than the months they’re experiencing now.

“That very much stands out for us,” said Peter Clark, spokesperson for Texans Care For Children, which advocates on behalf of Texas children and families and has put improvements to the state’s Medicaid eligibility system at the top of its list for state lawmakers when the Legislature convenes in January.

The agency-initiated request is a response to the incredible backlog of applications for Medicaid and food stamps after the federal unwinding of a pandemic-era policy that suspended the need for periodic renewal of benefits. Hundreds of thousands of Texans lost their Medicaid coverage because they didn’t get their renewal applications filed quick enough or they were procedurally removed from the program because of paperwork issues.

In its legislative appropriations request, the agency notes that federal rules require food stamp applications be reviewed within 30 days and Medicaid applicants within 45 days. Since 2019, that has not been the case.

As of Nov. 22, the wait time for a Medicaid application for an adult or child to be processed was 71 days and 131,869 applications were waiting to be completed. As of Dec. 5, the wait time was slightly improved at 59 days.

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“The TIERS eligibility system has suffered significant neglect due to the exceptional demands of” the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency’s request to the Legislature states. “Fully funding this request provides the level of resourcing needed to keep up with routine demands, and allows (state tech workers) to address the backlog of modification requests targeting timeliness mandates and client experience.”

Each year, there are as many as 50,000 maintenance service requests for the enrollment system filed by staff members.

The legislative request document calls for at least 1,772 new positions, but agency officials have provided specifics on what else th