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"TAKE A LOVED ONE TO
THE DOCTOR"
From: The Department of
Health and Human Services
HHS Secretary Tommy G.
Thompson today called on racial and ethnic minority communities to help
eliminate health care disparities by participating in Take a Loved One to the
Doctor Day on Tuesday, Sept. 16.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2003pres/20030912b.html
HELP US PUT A FACE ON THE
NUMBERS
OMB Watch, through its Social
Investment Initiative project, is launching a new website and database to
collect stories about real people or communities and allow searches by issue
area, keywords, city, state, or congressional district. Face on the Numbers is a way to allow the
people you serve to actually tell their story to a nation-wide audience and
make a difference.
http://d1.rtknet.org/sii/faq.php
**Children, Youth &
Families
New Report Explains Why More Children Suffer Emotional, Behavioral
Problems; Cites Importance of Nurturing Environments
The
YMCA of the USA, along with Dartmouth Medical School and the Institute for
American values released a new report, "Hardwired to Connect: The
Scientific Case for Authoritative Communities." The report documents a "crisis of
American childhood" -- "high and rising rates of depression, anxiety,
attention deficit, conduct disorders, suicidal thoughts and other serious
mental, emotional, and behavioral problems" -- and proposes a fundamental
"social change model" for addressing the crisis, including basic
shifts in U.S. public policy.
http://www.americanvalues.org/html/hardwired.html#Press
Report Shows Up to Half of All Bullying Can Be Prevented
A
report from a national anti-crime organization, Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, shows that new anti-aggression programs can
prevent up to half of all bullying which now affects one out of three children
in grades six to ten and can lead to violent crime and death. The law enforcement leaders called on
policy-makers to implement the proven bullying prevention programs in every
school.
http://www.fightcrime.org/releases.php?id=65
Low Income and Hardship Among
America's Kindergartners
A new report from the
National Center for Children in Poverty finds that most of the families with
incomes between 100-200 percent of the federal poverty level include at least
one full-time working parent and even so continue to experience hardship,
underscoring the importance of work supports such as child care subsidies. At
least one in eight low-income families still cannot obtain health insurance for
their children, have not taken their child to a dentist in the last year, and
have moved three or more times in the child’s life.
http://www.nccp.org/pub_lat03c.html
The Effects of Parental Education on
Income (2003)
A new fact sheet from the
National Center for Children in Poverty shows that nearly two-thirds of
low-income children have parents without any college education. Policies that
support education for low-income parents and their children offer them the
potential for lasting economic security.
http://www.nccp.org/pub_pei03.html
News & Issues - Summer 2003 -
Supports for Low-Income Families
The latest edition of News
and Issues from the National Center for Children in Poverty discusses
assistance for low-wage workers such as housing assistance, unemployment
insurance, and skill-building programs.
http://www.nccp.org/pub_sum03.html
Bonuses Awarded to States
for Increasing Adoptions of Foster Children
The Department of Health and
Human Services announced approximately $14.9 million in bonuses paid to 25
states and Puerto Rico for increasing the number of children adopted from
state-supervised foster care in fiscal year 2002. In states that qualify for
bonuses, 3,703 more children were adopted in fiscal year 2002 than in the
previous year.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2003pres/20030912.html
**Civic
Engagement & Philanthropy
**Community
Development
HUD Awards $24.6 Million for Rural Economic Development
The Department of Housing and
Urban Development announced $24.6 million in grants to help rural communities
in 32 states and Puerto Rico. Rural
non-profit organizations, federally recognized Native American tribes,
Community Development Corporations and state agencies will administer these
grants. The funding will help 87 rural
communities to build and improve affordable housing, create jobs and generate
community and economic development.
http://www.hud.gov/news/release.cfm?content=pr03-091.cfm
States Failing to Connect Economic Development with Job Access to
Public Transit
Good
Jobs First is releasing a 50-state study, which finds that not one single state
coordinates its economic development spending with public transportation. It
also finds that 46 states fail to even collect data on subsidized corporate
relocations and therefore cannot determine if their economic development
incentives are undermining job access for low-wage workers.
PDF:
http://www.goodjobsfirst.org/pdf/bus.pdf
**Economic
Security
Poor American Families
Face Eat of Heat Dilemma
A study supported by the
Joint Center for Poverty Research and the Institute for Research on Poverty
found that poor
families respond to higher heating costs in the winter by buying less food and
eating fewer calories. While both poor
and rich families increase their spending on home fuel in winter, rich families
also spend more on clothing and food served in the home during the cold
season. The poor, on the other hand, who
spend less on clothing and less on food at home, end up eating 10 percent fewer
calories in the winter.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-09/cfta-paf090803.php
Broadening
Tax Credits to Aid Working Families
An analysis from Brookings of
federal tax credit programs argues that a credit to enhance income security for
both low-income and middle-income families could broaden the political
constituency for investments in working families while providing needed
support.
http://www.brookings.org/es/urban/publications/eitc/20030829_Gitterman.htm
New evidence of
extraordinary growth in income inequality
The union funded Economic
Policy Institute finds that according to new data from the Congressional Budget
Office, the gap between the highest-income households and the lowest-income
households has widened dramatically. Although households with income levels in
the top 1% have enjoyed rapid growth, income has not increased as quickly for
middle- and low-income households.
http://www.epinet.org/content.cfm/webfeatures_snapshots
All in One Stop? The Accessibility of Work Support Programs at
One-Stop Centers
Under
the Workforce Investment Act, all local workforce areas in the U.S. are
required to develop a “one-stop” delivery system that makes an array of federally
funded employment programs available at one location. This report is the result
of interviews with 33 one-stop directors to examine the level of access to
seven work support programs (Earned Income Tax Credit, subsidized child care,
food stamps, publicly funded health insurance, cash assistance, child support,
and transportation assistance). The report discusses the findings of the
survey, innovative techniques for making work supports more accessible, and the
barriers to better access.
Full
Report - PDF: http://www.clasp.org/DMS/Documents/1063289617.64/one-stop_rpt.pdf
Policy
Brief – PDF: http://www.clasp.org/Pubs/DMS/Documents/1063289332.28/one-stop_brief.pdf
**Health
The Urban Institute has
release three new reports on health insurance coverage for low-income and
minority children.
Uninsured
Children are Much Less Likely to Receive Medical Care
Children covered by health
insurance--whether employer-sponsored coverage, Medicaid, the State Children's
Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), or other coverage--are abut 1.5 times more
likely than uninsured children to receive a least one well-child care doctor
visit annually.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/NewReports.cfm&PublicationID=8573
Public
Health Insurance Covers Nearly Half of All Low-Income Children
In 2002, Medicaid and the
State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) provided health insurance
coverage for 47.6 percent of all low-income children (children living in
families with incomes below 200 percent of the federal poverty line).
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/NewReports.cfm&PublicationID=8574
Gaps
in Health Insurance Coverage Narrow Among White, Black, Hispanic Children
In 2002, 7.8 million children
were uninsured, a decline of 1.8 million from 1999.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/NewReports.cfm&PublicationID=8575
The Six Million Medicare
Beneficiaries Excluded from Prescription Drug Benefits Under the Senate Bill
Are Disproportionately Minority,
An analysis from the Center
on Budget and Policy Priorities finds that African-American and Latino Medicare
beneficiaries are twice or more as likely to be excluded from Medicare prescription
drug benefits under the Senate bill because they are "dual eligibles," who also enrolled in the Medicaid
program. Nonetheless, a majority of dual
eligibles are white, non-Hispanic Medicare
beneficiaries.
http://www.cbpp.org/9-9-03health.htm
About 1.7 Million Medicare
Beneficiaries in Rural America Would Be Denied Medicare Prescription Drug
Benefits Under the Senate Prescription Drug Bill
An analysis from the Center
on Budget and Policy Priorities finds that the Senate version of the
prescription drug bill would deny Medicare prescription drug benefits for about
1.7 million Medicare beneficiaries living in rural areas because they are "dual
eligibles," who are also enrolled in Medicaid.
Dual eligibles are more likely to live in rural areas
than a typical American, so this exclusion would have a disproportionate impact
in rural America.
http://www.cbpp.org/9-9-03health2.htm
**Hunger and Nutrition
New Study Shows
Participation in Federal Nutrition Programs Can Contribute to Reducing
Childhood Obesity
A ground-breaking
peer-reviewed study, by academic researchers at the University of North
Carolina, Chapel Hill, and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, shows that
participation in the child nutrition programs and Food Stamps can reduce
childhood obesity. Using nationally
representative data from an official government survey of children, the
researchers focused on the risk of a low-income child aged 5 to 12 years being
at or above the 85th percentile of body mass index for age (an indication of
overweight).
http://www.frac.org/html/news/090503obesity_reduction.htm
**Substance Abuse
22 Million In U.S. Suffer from Substance Dependence or Abuse
According
to the newest results of the Household Survey released by the Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services Administration In 2002, an estimated 22 million
Americans suffered from substance dependence or abuse due to drugs, alcohol or
both. There were 19.5 million Americans,
8.3 percent of the population ages 12 or older, who currently used illicit
drugs, 54 million who participated in binge drinking in the previous 30 days,
and 15.9 million who were heavy drinkers.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2003pres/20030905.html
Philip Morris Continues to Dominate Youth Cigarette Market
The
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids responded to the tobacco-related data in the
2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
The survey shows that, while we have made progress in recent years in
reducing youth smoking rates, more than 750,000 kids still become new daily
smokers every year. That amounts to more than 2,000 every day. In addition,
more than 30 percent of all Americans reported using tobacco products in the
past month, which remains unacceptably high if we are to succeed in reducing
tobacco's terrible toll in health, lives and money.
http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/Script/DisplayPressRelease.php3?Display=685
National Program
Galvanizes Action to Reduce Teen drinking
A national evaluation of a
comprehensive federally sponsored initiative, by researchers from Wake Forest
University, shows that the program has galvanized action at the state and local
levels to reduce underage drinking. The
initiative emphasized increased activity has three key focuses: enforcement
efforts, public education about underage drinking and increased coordination
among local and state agencies.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-09/wfub-nep091003.php
**Welfare and Welfare Reform
The Senate Finance Committee's TANF
Reauthorization Bill
A paper from the Center on
Budget and Policy Priorities analyzes the TANF reauthorization bill that passed
the Senate Finance Committee on September 10.
http://www.cbpp.org/9-9-03tanf.htm
Statement from the Center
for Community Change on Senate Committee
Welfare Bill
“The Senate Finance Committee
has failed to produce a viable welfare reauthorization proposal. As it stands,
this bill does nothing to provide struggling families with the tools they need
to escape poverty. It imposes unrealistic work requirements on families
struggling to find jobs, does nothing to adequately expand education and
training opportunities, fails to make critical investments in childcare, and
continues policies that discriminate against legal immigrants.”
http://www.communitychange.org/pressmedia/03/tanfsept10.htm
The Urban Institute has
release three new reports on the experiences of individuals that are on welfare
and those who have transitioned off TANF.
Families
that Receive Government Benefits after Leaving Welfare Are Less Likely to Return
Receiving government benefits
after leaving welfare can tide families over crises that would otherwise lead
them to return to TANF.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/NewReports.cfm&PublicationID=8571
Half
of Former Welfare Recipients Are Working or Worked Recently
Employment among those who
left welfare is an important measure of the success of welfare reform.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/NewReports.cfm&PublicationID=8576
Half
of Welfare Recipients without Barriers are Working
In 2002, not even 30 percent
of welfare recipients were working.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/NewReports.cfm&PublicationID=8572
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