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**Children,
Youth & Families
Studies
Highlight Impact of Sept. 11, Iraq War on Adolescents
According to researchers at
the Medical College of Georgia, three months after the 9-11 terrorist attacks
in the United States, 10 percent of black adolescents attending an inner-city
Southern high school were reporting clinically significant symptoms of
post-traumatic stress, such as hyper-vigilance and recurring, disturbing
memories.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/mcog-shi030104.php
Dads
Miss Opportunity to Learn about their Kids
According to a study in
Pediatrics by a Saint
Louis University doctor, urban fathers say they want to participate in
their child's health care but work and other barriers stand in the way. The research suggests ways to involve dads in
making sure children stay healthy.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/slu-dmo022004.php
Family
Discipline, Religious Attendance Cut Levels of Later Violence among Aggressive
Children
According to a new
multi-ethnic study of urban youth by University of Washington researchers, aggressive 15 year olds who attended religious services,
felt attached to their schools or were exposed to good family management were
much less likely to have engaged in violence behavior by the time they turned
18.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/uow-fdr030404.php
U.S. Senate
Scores Common Sense Victories for Children, Rejects Special Protections for the
Gun Industry
The Children's Defense Fund
(CDF) applauded a victory for children when the U.S. Senate broke the
strangle-hold of the gun industry and the National Rifle Association by passing
important gun safety amendments and rejecting a bill that would have given
immunity to the gun industry and its trade associations. The Children's Defense Fund now calls on the
President to work with Congress to pass a strong and effective assault weapons
ban, as well as the gun show background check and child safety lock provisions
without giving the gun industry a free pass from liability.
http://www.childrensdefense.org/pressreleases/040302.asp
Depressed
Moms want Pediatricians to Hear Them
A new study by researchers at
University Hospitals of Cleveland's
Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital and Case Western Reserve University offers a possible solution to address postpartum
depression. Published in the March issue of Pediatrics, the study results
indicated that, regardless of whether new mothers have relatively mild cases of
the blues or incapacitating episodes of major depression, pediatricians can and
should play a key role in keeping these women from slipping through the cracks.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/uhoc-dmw030404.php
'Care
Managers' Help Depressed Elderly Reduce Suicidal Thoughts
A study conducted in three
major Eastern U.S. metropolitan areas has found that staffing doctors'
offices with depression care managers helps depressed
elderly patients reduce suicidal thoughts.
About 70 percent of intervention patients initially plagued by suicidal
thoughts were free of them after 8 months, compared to about 44 percent of
"usual care" patients. Such timely and improved treatment of
depression in primary care could save lives.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/niom-mh022704.php
**Community and
Economic Development
Seven cities leading
effort to help persons living on the streets
According to a report
released by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, seven cities
across the country are working toward ending long-term or chronic homelessness
and providing the rest of the nation with new approaches to better house and
serve their most vulnerable citizens.
HUD's study, Strategies for Reducing Chronic Street Homelessness,
focused on homeless assistance programs in Birmingham, Alabama; Boston; Columbus, Ohio; Los Angeles;
Philadelphia; San Diego;
and, Seattle. In each city, HUD found local leaders and homeless
assistance providers who are fundamentally changing their traditional
approaches toward serving those living on their streets.
http://www.hud.gov/news/release.cfm?content=pr04-016.cfm
HUD launches Assisted-Living
Information Center
Department of Housing and
Urban Development has launched a national website and toll-free call center at
Palm Terrace, a public housing assisted-living facility owned by the Tampa
Housing Authority. The Senior Housing Information Center
website and toll-free call-center (888-245-8938) will give more than 3,700
public housing authorities (PHAs), including Indian
housing authorities, the tools needed to modernize and create more senior
public housing options. To meet elderly needs, federally assisted housing can
be enriched with services - such as meals, healthcare providers and
transportation.
http://www.hud.gov/news/release.cfm?content=pr04-018.cfm
**Disabilities
HHS Awards $15.7 Million
to Help People With Disabilities Return to Work
The Department of Health and
Human Services announced the award of $15.7 million in grants to 28 states and
the District of
Columbia to
help people with disabilities find and keep work without losing their health
benefits. Under this program, states use
the grants to help people with disabilities retain their Medicaid coverage when
they become employed, to help provide appropriate personal assistance services
for those who need help bathing, dressing and other necessary activities, and
to support other improvements to help people with disabilities to remain
successfully employed.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2004pres/20040302.html
**Economic Security
Budget Priorities Gone
Awry
According
to a new analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the proposed Senate budget would cut taxes on the
wealthiest, raise taxes on the poorest workers, cut most domestic discretionary
program areas, and very likely increase the ranks of those without health
insurance. The proposal would exacerbate, rather than reduce, deficits.
http://www.cbpp.org/3-4-04bud.htm
Administration's
Budget Would Cut Heavily Into Many Areas Of Domestic
Discretionary Spending After 2005
According
to a new analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, under the
Administration’s budget, overall funding would be cut over the next five years
in nearly every broad area of the federal budget related to domestic
non-entitlement programs. Funding would
be significantly lower in 2009 than 2004 (in inflation-adjusted terms) for
non-entitlement programs in every area except defense, international affairs,
and science and space. By 2009, funding
for non-entitlement programs in areas such as national resources and the
environment, veterans’ health benefits, health, and agriculture would be 10
percent to 20 percent below the 2004 funding levels. Transportation programs, as well as
education, training, and social services programs, would be cut by 7 to 8
percent over this period
http://www.cbpp.org/2-27-04bud-pr.htm
**Education
Bullying in Middle Grades
Is Target of New Curriculum Program
The MetLife Foundation Read
for Health Program has developed a new curriculum and set of instructional
materials are now available to help parents, teachers, and kids combat
bullying, particularly in the middle grades.
Bullying may keep as many as 160,000 U.S. students out of school on any given day.
http://main.edc.org/newsroom/features/bullying_curriculum.asp
HHS Launches
Campaign to Prevent Youth Bullying
The Department of Health and
Human Services announced a new campaign to educate more Americans about how to
prevent bullying and youth violence -- behaviors that can have tremendous
negative impact on children's success in school and overall well-being. The campaign -- "Take A
Stand. Lend A Hand. Stop Bullying Now!" -- is designed to stop bullying,
including verbal or physical harassment that occurs repeatedly over time, that
is intended to cause harm, and that involves an imbalance of power between the
child who bullies and the child who is bullied.
The campaign was developed by HHS' Health Resources and Services
Administration (HRSA) in partnership with more than 70 health, safety,
education and faith-based organizations.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2004pres/20040301.html
School-Based Suicide
Prevention Program Shows Success
According to a study
published in the American Journal of Public Health, for the first time, a
school-based suicide prevention program has been shown to reduce suicidal
behavior in high school students. Students who participated in the program,
called "SOS (Signs of Suicide) High School Suicide Prevention Program,"
showed a 40 percent reduction in suicide attempts
http://www.uchc.edu/ocomm/newsreleases04/march04/suicide.html
President
Turns to IRS to Raise Levels of Math Education
An op-ed column from the
Urban Institute posits that the president's effort to "Leave No Child
Behind" has run into opposition on a variety of fronts. The Congress
complained that the money was too little, insisted that the president spend
less to reduce the deficit, and then passed the Omnibus Reconciliation and
Giveaway Acts of 2003 and 2004. In desperation, the president has done what all
modern presidents have done when they cannot achieve their goals through direct
appropriations: Turn to the IRS for help.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=8759
**Health
Analysis Shows Overall
Media Coverage of HIV/AIDS Decreasing
A new Kaiser Family
Foundation study examining 22 years of news coverage finds that overall media
coverage of AIDS is decreasing, while the amount of coverage of the global
epidemic is increasing. The study also
finds that specific populations disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS in the United States, such as gay men, teenagers and young adults,
minorities, and women, were the focus of only a small amount of the news
coverage.
http://www.kff.org/kaiserpolls/AIDSat21.cfm
HHS Awards $595
Million for AIDS Care in Major Urban Areas
The Department of Health and
Human Services announced 51 grants totaling more than $595 million to the
cities hit hardest by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The grants will help these cities
provide primary care and supportive services for low-income residents with
HIV/AIDS. Funds are awarded based on the
estimated number of people living with AIDS in the city, and supplemental funds
are awarded competitively based on demonstration of severe need and other
criteria. A portion of the grant awards will fund the Minority AIDS Initiative
to bolster care and services among minority populations.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2004pres/20040301a.html
Providing
Cribs May Help Protect At-Risk Babies from SIDS
Donating safe cribs to
families who cannot afford to buy them may decrease the risk of sudden infant
death, according to new Saint Louis University research.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/slu-pcm030204.php
Vaccinating
Children Protects Adults as Well
Researchers from the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention report that since the approval of a vaccine
against pneumococcal bacteria for young children in
2000, there has not only been a drop in the incidence of severe disease caused
these bacteria in children but also a significant decline in the disease in
adults.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/asfm-vcp022604.php
Homeless
Children have High Rates of Asthma
According to an article in
the March issue of The Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, the
prevalence of asthma among homeless children in New York City is approximately 40 percent, which is six times the
national rate for children.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/jaaj-hch022604.php
Racial,
Economic Gaps in Kids' Eye Care Seen in Four New Studies
A quartet of new studies
focusing on children's eye care finds that race, income, location, gender and
insurance status can make a big difference in the likelihood that children with
vision problems will see an eye specialist or get corrective lenses. Minority
children, and those without insurance, are least likely to receive such care,
while white girls are mostly likely to. And while school-based eye exams appear
effective, the follow-up varies greatly.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/uomh-reg030204.php
College
Education Protects Caucasian Women against Obesity more than African American
Women
College-educated African
American women have significantly higher body mass index (BMI) ratings than
Caucasian women who have been to college, according to a presentation given at
the American Psychosomatic Society Conference in Orlando, Fla.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/rpsl-cep022704.php
GAO report, Senate Hearing
on Insurance Scams
A new General Accounting
Office study finds unauthorized or bogus health insurance to be a growing
problem. The GAO report cited a recent
Commonwealth Fund study on insurance scams, authored by a Georgetown University researcher.
GAO report:
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-04-312
Commonwealth Fund Study –
PDF: http://programs/insurance/kofman_insurancescams_ib_665.pdf
**Hunger and Nutrition
Child Nutrition
Reauthorization Markup in the House Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on
Education Reform
The Food Research and Action
Center provides an analysis of The Child Nutrition Improvement and Integrity
Act which is expected to be passed by the House Education and the Workforce
Committee next week and brought to the House Floor for a vote soon after. The positive changes made by the bill are
modest -- less than hoped for -- but there are several of them. Except for one
or two items, all changes are in the right direction. There may be an
opportunity to get a consensus on more improvements by the time the full
committee marks up the bill.
http://www.frac.org/html/federal_food_programs/cnreauthor/cnalert030304.htm
Nutrition Education Helps Stretch Meager Food Budgets
The Expanded Food and
Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) can significantly reduce how often families
out of food, according to a study of more than 16,000 EFNEP participants
conducted by Cornell nutritionists.
http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/March04/EFNEP.success.ssl.html
**Philanthropy &
Nonprofit Management
NCRP: Examination of the
Philanthropic Grantmaking of Politically Conservative
Foundations
The National Committee for
Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP) has issued a new report on the grantmaking of politically conservative foundations,
revisiting the analysis and conclusions reached in NCRP's
seminal report on conservative philanthropy in 1997. The new report greatly
expands on the 1997 research, looking at 79 conservative foundations and their
grants to 350 archconservative policy nonprofit organizations between 1999 and
2001.
http://www.ncrp.org/Releases/PR-03-03-2004.htm
**Substance
Abuse
Activism
Prompts Teen Smokers to Cut Back on Cigarettes
A Stanford study involving 10
Bay Area continuation, or alternative, high schools found that
among students who were regular smokers, those who engaged in anti-tobacco
advocacy efforts significantly reduced their own cigarette use compared to
teens in traditional drug abuse prevention classes. What the researchers
found even more encouraging was that the decrease continued six months later -
a rarity in the efforts to reduce cigarette use among teens.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/sumc-apt022504.php
**Welfare
and Welfare Reform
CDF finds
Parental Employment Dropped in 2003, Indicating Dangers of New Congressional
Welfare Proposal
According to the Children’s
defense Fund the percentage of American parents who are working dropped in 2003
for the third straight year, wiping out much of the past progress made in
moving single mothers from welfare to work.
In Congress this week the chairman of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Resources proposed
requiring that more families on welfare must work-even when there are no
jobs. This plan would effectively
squeeze already tight state budgets and could penalize jobless families for
failing to meet the more stringent work requirements.
http://www.childrensdefense.org/pressreleases/040303.asp
Data on employment rates of
all parents and single parents from 1995 to 2003
PDF: http://www.childrensdefense.org/pdf/parental_employment.pdf
Proposed TANF Extension Would Pressure States to Cut TANF
Caseloads and Place States at Risk of Penalties
The Center for Law and Social
Policy reports that on February 26, a bill (H.R. 3848) was filed to temporarily
extend the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. In contrast
with prior extensions, this bill does not seek to maintain current law until
reauthorization is resolved. Rather,
while maintaining flat TANF and mandatory child care funding, H.R. 3848 would
require a “recalibration” of the program’s caseload reduction credit so that
the amount of a state’s credit would be based on recent caseload declines. This paper briefly summarizes the current
status of reauthorization efforts, provides additional explanation of the
“recalibration” provision of H.R. 3848, and discusses H.R. 3848’s potential
effects on state programs.
Marriage-Related Provisions in Welfare Reauthorization
Proposals: A Summary
The Center for Law and Social
Policy gives the background of marriage-promotion efforts within the context of
welfare reform and describes the provisions relating to marriage and family
formation in the 2003 and 2002 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
reauthorization bills.
http://www.clasp.org/DMS/Documents/1056725608.93/view_html
Child Support, Fatherhood,
and Marriage Provisions in TANF Reauthorization Bills
Three PowerPoint
presentations from the Center for Law and Social Policy, presented to the
Western Interstate Child Support Enforcement Council, summarize provisions in
recent Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) reauthorization
legislation.
Child
Support Provisions in TANF Reauthorization Bills
PDF: http://www.clasp.org/Pubs/DMS/Documents/1077739275.83/CS_TANF_bills.pdf
Child
Support Assignment and Distribution Provisions in TANF Reauthorization Bills
PDF: http://www.clasp.org/Pubs/DMS/Documents/1077739393.53/Distribution_TANF_bills.pdf
Fatherhood
and Marriage Funding Provisions in TANF Reauthorization Bills
PDF: http://www.clasp.org/Pubs/DMS/Documents/1077739518.74/Marriage_Fatherhood.pdf
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