We recently lost a cherished, big-hearted, longtime member of the Texans Care for Children family, Dr. Clift Price.
Dr. Price was there from the beginning. He was a part of the original Care Coalition, which became Texans Care for Children, and worked side-by-side with Phil Strickland, our founder.
Dr. Price had an incredible impact on children’s health policy in Texas. With patient determination he helped pass policies related to seat belts, booster seats, insurance coverage of childhood vaccinations, bicycle helmet safety, prevention of the sale of tobacco to minors, fluoridation of water to reduce tooth decay, and Early Childhood Intervention, among other important laws. He was instrumental in launching and growing the Reach Out and Read program in Austin to boost early childhood literacy.
Dr. Price once shared with me that what motivated him to advocate was “children too often were last in line” in policy debates. He used his voice as a trusted pediatrician to draw attention to what worked to prevent child injury and deaths as well as save taxpayer dollars.
Of course, this was all on top of a distinguished professional career supporting healthy kids and families as a pediatrician and a state health official.
You can read more about his remarkable life and career here.
We are truly grateful for all that he did to help build and strengthen Texans Care for Children, support kids across the state, and inspire generations of physicians and advocates.
We offer our warmest condolences to Dr. Price’s family, to his colleagues at the Texas Pediatric Society, and to so many others who are mourning his passing and celebrating his life.