Expert Offers Tips to
Help Children Cope With Katrina's Devastation
In the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina, special attention should be given to children, both the victims of
the storm and those who have only watched the tragedy on television, says
a Purdue University expert. "Kids are resilient, but we have to recognize
that they grieve losses. Children process grief differently. They might seem
OK, or they might be sad and then suddenly put that kind of emotionality aside
for a while and play with friends. Their grief is often expressed differently
from adult grief."
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20050915.144815&time=15%2045%20PDT&year=2005&public=1
Resources Related to
Health Coverage and Hurricane Katrina
As part of the Kaiser Family
Foundation's commitment to help respond to the devastation from Hurricane
Katrina, you will find resources related to an ongoing effort to monitor and
study the health coverage and needs of the victims. Check back frequently
in the coming months for the latest updates. In the past week, the Kaiser
Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured held two briefings on the health
status and coverage needs of victims and the challenges for states affected
by Hurricane Katrina and released an issue brief and fact sheets.
http://www.kff.org/katrina/index.cfm
Over 100 Organizations
Ask Congress to Establish Emergency Medicaid for Katrina Survivors
Families USA, along with over 100 other organizations, delivered
a joint letter to Congress today urging members to establish emergency Medicaid
for Katrina survivors. The letter, which was signed by health care providers,
religious groups, and organizations representing the elderly, children, people
with disabilities, and others that rely on Medicaid as their health safety
net, requests that Congress streamline eligibility requirements and ease documentation
requirements to remove administrative barriers for survivors trying to get
health care services. http://www.familiesusa.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Media_Release_Emergency_Medicaid_Katrina
Head Start Provides $15M
to Help Hurricane Evacuees
The U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services announced $15 million in emergency funding to assist Head
Start and Early Head Start grantees in providing services to children and
families displaced by Hurricane Katrina. The $15 million announcement will
enable Head Start and Early Head Start grantees to provide services to evacuee
children and families over the next 30 days. To receive services, a family
must have been forced to leave their home because of Hurricane Katrina.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2005pres/20050912.html
**Children, Youth &
Families
Poverty Increases for
the Fourth Year in a Row in 2004; 1.5 Million More Children Are Poor than
in 2000
Since reaching a low point
in 2000, the number of children living in poverty in the United States has grown by 12.8 percent to exceed
13 million, according to an analysis by the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF)
of U.S. Census Bureau data. Poor families and children are being left behind
as the benefits of a steadily growing economy fail to trickle down. As these
numbers come to light, Congress is preparing to enact additional tax cuts
and cut funding for programs that serve low-income children and families.
http://www.childrensdefense.org/pressreleases/050830.aspx
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Teacher Quality Important
for At-Risk Children
High quality teachers who
are emotionally supportive can have a positive effect on at-risk children,
and reduce their academic and social problems. A large-scale study from the
University of Virginia exposed at-risk children to classrooms of high instructional
quality and emotional support. The at-risk children showed the same achievement
levels as their peers who were not at-risk. The results show that school reform
is absolutely necessary to improve teacher quality and to greatly reduce children's
social and academic problems.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-09/sfri-tqi090805.php
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Get more information on
these issues at http://www.ecommunityissues.com.
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**Community Development
HOPE VI and Neighborhood
Renewal
Using four case studies,
a new report from the Brookings Institution examines the broader neighborhood
effects of redeveloping the nation's worst public housing using the mixed-finance
HOPE VI program, finding that, when done right, it can not only improve living
conditions but also revitalize the surrounding area.
http://www.brookings.org/metro/pubs/20050913_hopevi.htm
HUD Awards Nearly $24
Million for Affordable Housing and Economic Development in American’s Heartland
The Department of Housing
and Urban Development announced $23.7 million in grants in more than a hundred
rural communities in 37 states and Puerto Rico to stimulate their local economies,
produce more affordable housing and create jobs. The funding is provided through
HUD's Rural Housing and Economic Development Program. In addition to the
HUD funding announced today, these rural communities are expected to generate
$35 million from other public and private sources to further promote economic
development and employment.
http://www.hud.gov/news/release.cfm?content=pr05-116.cfm
Upcoming Indian Housing
Conference to Illustrate Best Practices, New Approaches to Create Affordable
Housing for Native Americans
The Department of Housing
and Urban and Development will host Sharing Solutions and Innovative Approaches,
a National Indian Housing Summit and Trade Show in Reno, Nevada on September
19-22. Tribal councils, tribal members, housing authorities and Tribally Designated
Housing Entities (representing tribes), as well as, mortgage lenders, housing
developers, federal agencies and Indian organizations will share best practices
to create more affordable housing on and off reservations and gather new approaches
to help more Native Americans become homeowners.
http://www.hud.gov/news/release.cfm?content=pr05-110.cfm
**Economic Security
Does Making Work Pay
Pay?
According to a study from
MDRC, four programs that supplemented the
earnings of low-income adults increased employment, earnings, and income -
particularly for the most disadvantaged - but these effects generally faded
after the programs ended.
http://www.mdrc.org/publications/414/overview.html
Low-Income Working Families:
Facts and Figures
According to The
Urban Institute the vast majority of low-income parents are working but
still struggling to make ends meet. This fact sheet shows how low-income working
families have much in common with other American families as they seek to
balance work and family life, yet face much greater risk and vulnerability
than their higher-income counterparts.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9391
Welfare Reform in Los
Angeles
According to a report from
MDRC, welfare caseloads fell, employment
increased, and neighborhood conditions improved in Los Angeles during a period of economic growth
and welfare reform. However, most welfare recipients still remained poor,
the concentration of poverty increased, and those who worked were usually
in low-wage jobs without benefits.
http://www.mdrc.org/publications/415/overview.html
Report Identifies Workforce
Development Strategies for Job Growth, Especially Among Minorities, Immigrants,
Low-Income Americans
For too many of America's citizens, the goal of earning a
paycheck to support a family, the key to the American Dream, has slipped out
of reach. In response to this national crisis, Jobs for the Future (JFF) has
published "The Right Jobs: Identifying Career Advancement Opportunities
for Low-Skilled Workers," a landmark new report that pinpoints 16 specific
occupations that have the promise to lift thousands of Americans out of poverty
into the middle class.
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20050915.131217&time=14%2054%20PDT&year=2005&public=1
**Education
Good Parenting in Kindergarten
Increases Chances of Good Kids in Fourth Grade
A study from Wichita State University finds that early parent-child relationships
are important to establish strong communication and monitoring in later childhood
years. A study involving 267 children from strong family backgrounds concluded
that a parent-child relationship based on warmth and understanding reduces
the appearance of conduct problems in adolescence. It is important to note
that both the parent and the child must contribute to the relationship. The
results may aid in conduct problem intervention.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-09/sfri-gpi090805.php
Should States have More
Control over Head Start?
An opinion piece from the
Center for Law and Social Policy finds
that some of the reauthorization debate has focused on whether to expand state
control over the program-but a better question is, How can Congress raise
Head Start's quality and availability? The answer: increase the resources
to local programs, improve teacher education standards, boost federal accountability,
and support collaboration among states, federal agencies, and Head Start grantees.
http://www.clasp.org/publications/headstartopinion.htm
Hispanic Parents to Benefit
From No Child Left Behind Informational Guide
The Department of Education
distributed the first Tool Kit for Hispanic Families - Resources to Help Children
Succeed in School and just in time for the new school year. More Hispanic
family tool kits will be distributed throughout September, with valuable information
in English and Spanish on everything from No Child Left Behind benefits and
services to tips for helping children be successful students.
http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2005/08/08312005.html
Why the Senate Higher
Education Bill Is Good News For Low-Income Adults-And How to Make It Even
Better
According to the Center
for Law and Social Policy on September 8th, the Senate Health, Education,
Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee unanimously approved S. 1614, bipartisan
legislation to reauthorize the Higher Education Act. Among the bill's provisions
that will help low income adults are new, supplemental Pell grants to the
poorest students; expansion of Pell grants to students enrolled less than
half-time or attending year round; pilots of student aid for modularized programs;
and grants to prepare nontraditional students for high growth jobs. Further
improvements in the bill are needed, though, to increase aid to working adults,
to simplify student aid applications, and to prevent fraud and abuse.
PDF: http://www.clasp.org/publications/clasp_summary_of_senate_hea_bill_0905.pdf
HUD Awards Tribal Colleges
Nearly $3 Million in Grants
Five colleges that primarily
serve Native Americans received $2,920,770 in grants today from the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development. The funding, from HUD's Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP), will allow these institutions
to develop or expand education and training programs for low- to moderate-income
Native Americans.
http://www.hud.gov/news/release.cfm?content=pr05-121.cfm
**Health
Half of Doctors Not Trained
in Important Areas of Cross-Cultural Care
A Commonwealth Fund–supported
study in the Journal of the American Medical Association finds that even as
America grows
more racially and ethnically diverse, resident physicians say they don't feel
prepared to provide all patients with "culturally competent" care.
http://www.cmwf.org/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=295334
Race and Gender Disparities
Persist in Heart Attack Care and Mortality
Despite a decade of initiatives
to remedy health disparities in cardiovascular medicine, at least some aspects
of the treatment of U.S.
patients hospitalized for heart attacks continues to vary according to sex
and race, according to a study by researchers at Emory University in collaboration with Yale University and
other centers. The results found a consistent pattern of less intensive treatment
offered to women and black heart-attack patients.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-08/euhs-rag081205.php
Medicaid Spending on
Foster Children
A policy brief from the
Urban Institute presents the first national analysis of Medicaid health care
spending on children in foster care and children adopted from foster care.
Data from the Medicaid Statistical Information System (MSIS) document that
states expended approximately $3.8 billion of Medicaid on 869,087 foster and
adopted children in Federal Fiscal Year 2001. The brief documents the types
of services most commonly received by foster children and the amount states
expended on these services. The brief also highlights variation in spending
across states; among children of different genders, ages, and races; and among
children receiving and not receiving capitated health care services.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9401
Medicaid and SCHIP Retention
in Challenging Times
According to the Center
on Budget and Policy Priorities, efforts to reduce the number of low-income
uninsured children and families have focused on expanding eligibility for
public insurance programs and finding ways to facilitate enrollment in these
programs. This has become an increasing priority in recent years, with a
number of states pursuing effective and cost-efficient strategies to ensure
appropriate retention. Managed care organizations (MCO’s) contracting
with states for the delivery of health services to people enrolled in Medicaid
and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) are natural partners
in this effort, and a number have developed projects designed to educate their
members about the process of renewing eligibility and assist members with
necessary paperwork
http://www.cbpp.org/9-13-05health.htm
New Kaiser Medicare Q&A Column
distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
A weekly column prepared
by the Kaiser Family Foundation is being distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune
beginning mid-September. The column will answer questions from readers related
to the new Medicare drug benefit. This week's question: Should I enroll in
a Medicare prescription drug plan?
http://www.kff.org/medicare/QA/091505.cfm
**Hunger and Nutrition
The Special Supplemental
Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children
USDA’s recently released
guidance and general memorandum are designed to help State WIC agencies restore
or preserve the continued delivery of WIC benefits and to reach potentially
newly eligible individuals affected by Hurricane Katrina. The 2000 WIC Policy
memorandum: “WIC Disaster Policy and Coordination” provides general guidance
on how WIC should respond in disaster situations. There are a range of “alternate
procedures” options that State WIC agencies can employ to continue WIC services
in a disaster including:
http://www.frac.org/news/wic_disaster.html
Food Stamp Participation
in June 2005 More than 1.3 Million Above June 2004 Level
Food stamp participation
rose by 99,206 people in June 2005 to 25,507,695, for an over-the-year increase
of over 1.3 million people. This marked the third monthly caseload increase
in the first six months of 2005. Food Stamp Program growth over the year reflects
continuing joblessness, state actions to improve access, and the effects of
the food stamp reauthorization implementation.
http://www.frac.org/html/news/fsp/05.06_FSP.html
**Substance Abuse
Twice as Many Adverts
for Unhealthy Foods, Cigarettes and Alcohol in Black and Latino Magazines
Magazines aimed at African-American
and Hispanic women publish twice as many adverts for potentially health-damaging
products, such as alcohol or junk food, as mainstream magazines aimed mainly
at white women. Black and Latino magazines also publish four times fewer adverts
for healthy products. A study published in the open access journal, BMC Public
Health, shows that the content of advertisements in Black or Latino magazines
may contribute to the lower health status observed in African-American and
Hispanic populations in the USA.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-08/bc-tam081605.php
Survey Finds Little Change
in U.S. Drug
Use
Relatively few Americans
admit to being regular users of marijuana, and fewer than one in 20 say they
recently used drugs other than marijuana -- rates that have not budged much
over the past few years.
http://www.jointogether.org/saredirect/?Object_ID=578243&Type=sa
