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August 24, 2005New University of Virginia Book Shows How Schools Can Safely Deal With Student Threats of Violence
From Ascribe Newsfeed: With the Red Lake High School shooting this past spring having left 12 wounded and 10 dead, including the student-shooter, school administrators across the nation may be starting a new school year concerned about the potential for...
Case researchers find exercise, eating right and maintaining weight benefit oral health.
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Researchers from Case Western Reserve University examined data from 12,110 individuals who participated in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) and found that individuals who exercised, had healthy eating habits and...
Trauma of war hits troops years later
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: New Scientist has pieced together evidence showing that war veterans will be paying the price for decades to come. It is well recognised that soldiers returning home from combat with post traumatic stress disorder, or...
J-Learning.org: J-Lab Launches 'How-to' Site for Community Publishing
From Ascribe Newsfeed: J-Learning.org, a how-to digital handbook for designing, launching and sustaining an online community news site was launched today by J-Lab: The Institute for Interactive Journalism at the University of Maryland. The Web site offers 20 chapters and...
Grants to Research 'Reduced Risk' Tobacco Products
From Substance Abuse Funding News: The National Institutes of Health will award several grants to fund research into the efficacy of so-called "reduced-risk" tobacco products. Read more from this post....
Sen. Reid, FHLBank San Francisco Work With Nevada Churches to Increase Affordable Housing
From U.S. Newswire Releases: The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (FHLBank San Francisco) today joined Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) in sponsoring a Las Vegas Symposium that discussed how to increase affordable housing for senior citizens, immigrants and low-income...
High Stakes for the Housing Voucher Program in the 2006 Appropriations Bill
From Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: Since 2002, Congress and HUD have implemented a series of substantial changes in funding policy for the “Section 8” Housing Choice Voucher Program. These changes have been driven in part by concerns over...
The Impact of Repealing State and Local Tax Deductibility
From The Urban Institute: How would the elimination of state and local tax deductibility affect taxpayers and the states in which they live? While taxpayers in all 50 states claim this deduction, the benefits are concentrated in relatively few states....
Immigrant children misdiagnosed as language-impaired
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Immigrant children still mastering the English language risk being shuffled into special education services they don't need, because of errors in assessment for speech problems, according to a new University of Alberta study. Read more...
TV ads market junk food to kids, new study finds
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: For young Americans, the "food landscape" in television advertising is packed with junk food, according to a new study. The study by researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is the first to explore...
August 23, 2005
Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Program's Funds Suspended by HHS; Silver Ring Thing Program Uses Taxpayer Money for Religious Activity
From U.S. Newswire Releases: The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S. (SIECUS) is pleased by the decision of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to suspend federal taxpayer dollars to the Silver Ring Thing (SRT),...
Pew Charitable Trusts Announces New Center to Foster Creativity and Excellence Within Philadelphia's Arts and Heritage Communities
From Ascribe Newsfeed: The Pew Charitable Trusts today announces the Philadelphia Center for Arts and Heritage, the new home to the Trusts' dance, theatre, visual arts, music, heritage, artist fellowships, and cultural management initiatives. In addition to the practical benefits...
Community Technology Foundation of California Grants Awarded to Benefit California Service Organizations Serving People With Disabilities
From Ascribe Newsfeed: The Community Technology Foundation of California (CTFC) awarded grants to increase awareness and participation in the Ticket to Work Program. The grants are intended to increase health care access and employment for people with disabilities in California....
HUD Data Show Housing Voucher Costs Leveled Off Starting In 2003 As Rental Market Cooled
From Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: The Administration has pointed to “spiraling” costs for the Housing Choice Voucher program to justify radical changes in the program’s funding structure and the elimination of many key protections for low-income families. HUD...
APHA Calls Court Decision Supporting Youth Smoking Prevention Campaign a Victory for Public Health
From U.S. Newswire Releases: Following is a statement from Georges C. Benjamin, MD, FACP, executive director of the American Public Health Association: The American Public Health Association applauds yesterday's court decision that vindicated the American Legacy Foundation's highly successful youth...
The Distributional Consequences of Federal Assistance for Higher Education: The Intersection of Tax and Spending Programs
From The Urban Institute: For nearly a decade, federal higher education subsidies have increasingly been delivered through the tax code rather than through direct spending programs such as grants, loan subsidies, and work study. This paper reviews the results of...
Beyond the Fiscal Silver Lining
From The Urban Institute: This article analyses the Bush Administration's Mid-Session Review of the Budget, which paints a fairly optimistic picture of the budget situation in the next few years. There has been a surprising increase in revenues from both...
Improved 50 State Medicaid Benefits Database Includes 2004 Data
From The Kaiser Family Foundation: A newly enhanced interactive database based on 50-state survey data provides easy access to information on health services provided by each state's Medicaid program. You can search the database by state or Medicaid benefit and...
AMA Urges Congress to Halt Medicare Cuts, Avert Medicare Access Problem for Seniors
From U.S. Newswire Releases: The American Medical Association (AMA) today made a house call to Ohio to draw attention to an imminent access to care problem for Ohio's 1.7 million Medicare patients. If Congress does not act, payments to physicians...
Medicare Law Prompts a Rush for Lobbyists
From NYT > Washington: To keep track of the new Medicare rules and to decipher their meaning is a full-time job for hundreds of lawyers and lobbyists. Read more from this post....
August 22, 2005
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's Child Development Lab Studies Misunderstood World of Kids' Imaginary Companions
From Ascribe Newsfeed: Read more from this post....
High Schools Address the Cruelest Cut (washingtonpost.com)
From Yahoo! News: Top Stories: washingtonpost.com - He arrived 10 minutes before his fate, so Filip Olsson stood outside Severna Park High School and waited for coaches to post the cut list for the boys' soccer team. Read more from...
Conn. Challenges No Child Left Behind Law (AP)
From Yahoo! News: Top Stories: AP - Connecticut on Monday became the first state to challenge the No Child Left Behind law in court, arguing that the centerpiece of President Bush's education law amounts to an unfunded mandate from the...
Connecticut Sues the U.S. Over School Testing
From NYT > Washington: Connecticut said the federal government's testing requirement will not help children but will cost the state millions. Read more from this post....
California Ruling Expands Same-Sex Parental Rights
From NYT > National: The California Supreme Court ruled that both members of a lesbian couple should be considered their child's mothers even after their relationship ends. Read more from this post....
Race and gender disparities persist in heart attack care and mortality
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: 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...
Twice as many adverts for unhealthy foods, cigarettes and alcohol in black and Latino magazines
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: 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...
Study finds that school-funding loopholes leave poor children behind
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Federal funds found to subsidize the rich The nation's main program for educating the disadvantaged, Title I, is hampered by loopholes that prevent it from fulfilling its mission, according to a new study. The $13...
Harvard Researchers Gather More Evidence Implicating Menthol in Health Disparities Between White, Black Smokers; Analysis of Menthol Cigarettes, Favored by Black Smokers, Finds More of the Additive in Brands Labeled 'Light'
From Ascribe Newsfeed: Read more from this post....
Death Rates Drop In Prisons, Jails
From washingtonpost.com - washingtonpost.com - US government, national security, science and national news and headlines.: Inmate death rates for suicide, homicide and AIDS are showing substantial declines in jails and state prisons, the government says. The trend reflects improved medical...
August 21, 2005
More Drugs in Schools, CASA Survey Says
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: A survey by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse finds that 28 percent of middle-school students say that drugs are available in their schools, up 47 percent since 2002. Read more from...
SAMHSA Practice Improvement Grants for Nonprofits
From Substance Abuse Funding News: SAMHSA is offering $1.9 million in grants to develop research capacity in community-based organizations that treat alcohol and other drug abuse and/or co-occurring mental-health disorders. Read more from this post....
SAMHSA Conference Grants
From Substance Abuse Funding News: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Knowledge Dissemination Conference grants are aimed at improving practices within the prevention and treatment fields. Read more from this post....
What's a Youngster to Do? The Education and Labor Market Plight of Youth in High-Poverty Communities
From Center for Law and Social Policy: by Linda Harris. Statistics show that many young adults in economically distressed communities are being left behind in educational systems and in the job market. This article highlights the magnitude of distress in...
Review of research shows that playing violent video games can heighten aggression
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Violent video games can increase aggressive behavior in children and adolescents, both in the short- and long-term, according to an empirical review of the last 20 years of research. These findings are presented at the...
Recent State Efforts in Medical Child Support
From Center for Law and Social Policy: by Paula Roberts. In August of 2000, the Medical Child Support Working Group issued a report recommending over 70 changes in medical child support that would facilitate the enrollment of more children being...
Improving TANF for Teens
From Center for Law and Social Policy: . by Jodie Levin-Epstein and Angie Schwartz, Skadden Fellow, Teens & TANF Project Director, National Center for Youth examines the capacity of the nation's welfare program to assist adolescents, delineates the special rules...
August 19, 2005
Urgent Need for Faster Improvement in Nevada Schools, Says WestEd Report; Near-Bottom National Rankings Can Be Corrected by Seven Crucial Statewide Actions
From Ascribe Newsfeed: A new WestEd report details the reasons behind the current standing of Nevada's education system and recommends seven actions to spur needed improvements on behalf of Nevada's children and for securing the state's economic health. Nevada continues...
Educational Program for Journalists in Detroit on September 7: 'Reporting on the Health Challenges of Black Seniors'
From U.S. Newswire Releases: The National Press Foundation and the Resource Centers for Minority Aging Research will present this no-cost seminar for journalists, September 7, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m., in the Sophocles Room at the Atheneum Suite Hotel...
Black joblessness blamed on multilayered segregation
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: The first comprehensive study of the location of unemployed men in metropolitan areas, has found that jobless black men occupy a uniquely disadvantageous "ecological niche" that severely limits their potential for future employment. Read more...
August 17, 2005
AHRQ-Supported Study Finds Medical Disparities Narrowing
From U.S. Newswire Releases: An increasing percentage of black enrollees in Medicare managed care plans are being screened for breast cancer or treated for diabetes or heart disease in accordance with nationally recognized quality measures, according to a new study...
Overcoming Concentrated Poverty and Isolation
From The Urban Institute: During the 1990s, the Department of Housing and Urban Development launched three rigorous research demonstrations testing alternative strategies for helping low-income families escape the isolation and distress of high-poverty, central-city communities. All three demonstrations were carefully...
A Good Report on AIDS, and Some Credit the Web
From NYT > Health: Health officials have been scrambling to explain a significant decline in new H.I.V. infections among gay men in San Francisco. Read more from this post....
Doctors Argue Against Higher Co-Payments for Medicaid
From NYT > Health: Doctors warned a federal advisory panel that higher fees could deter some poor people from seeking necessary medical care. Read more from this post....
Overcoming Concentrated Poverty and Isolation: Ten Lessons for Policy and Practice
From The Urban Institute: During the 1990s, the Department of Housing and Urban Development launched three rigorous research demonstrations testing alternative strategies for helping low-income families escape the isolation and distress of high-poverty, central-city communities. All three demonstrations were carefully...
In Health Care, a Race Gap Persists
From washingtonpost.com - washingtonpost.com - US government, national security, science and national news and headlines.: Black Americans still get far fewer operations, tests, medications and other life-saving treatments than whites, despite years of efforts to erase racial disparities in health...
New Initiative to Reduce Burden of Student Debt Announced by The Pew Charitable Trusts
From Ascribe Newsfeed: American families today are facing extraordinary financial challenges on many fronts - the rising costs of health care and housing, the need to save for retirement, and the ability to pay for their children's college education. To...
Students Live in Retirement Center to Better Understand Aging Issues
From Ascribe Newsfeed: If graduate students are going to study issues facing older adults, then the average 20- to 30-year-old has a lot to gain from living in a retirement center, says a Purdue University gerontology expert. Two Purdue University...
Many Going to College Aren't Ready, Report Finds
From NYT > National: Only about half of this year's high school graduates have the reading skills they need to succeed in college, a study has concluded. Read more from this post....
Tobacco control and healthier diets are key to cutting heart deaths
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Encouraging everyone to stop smoking and eat healthier is four times more effective at reducing heart deaths than current government initiatives that target patients who already have heart problems, finds a study published online by...
Child Care Centers, Child Care Subsidies, and Faith-Based Organizations: Preliminary Findings on Five Counties in 2003
From The Urban Institute: Faith-based organizations play an important role in the provision and support of child care services. This document summarizes preliminary findings from a forthcoming study on the extent to which child care centers in five counties in...
The Economics of Juvenile Jurisdiction
From The Urban Institute: Commissioned by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice, this paper proposes methods for an economic analysis of the nation's separate system of juvenile laws and juvenile...
U.S. Officials Discuss Administration Strategy to Address National Meth Challenge, Announce New Initiatives
From U.S. Newswire Releases: On Thursday, August 18 at the Davidson County Drug Court, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt, and Director of National Drug Control Policy John Walters will discuss the Bush...
DePaul University Studies Find Community-Based Recovery Homes Result in High Success Rates For Recovering Addicts; Evaluation of Oxford Houses Reveals Low Substance Abuse After 24 Months
From Ascribe Newsfeed: Read more from this post....
CBPP Briefing: Much at Stake for Housing Voucher Program as Congress Resolves Federal Housing Funding for Fiscal Year 2006
From U.S. Newswire Releases: WHAT: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities Conference Call Briefing: Much at Stake for Housing Voucher Program as Congress Resolves Federal Housing Funding for Fiscal Year 2006; Analysis of House and Senate Versions of Housing Funding...
Families at prayer? Half of children with two religious parents reject church
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Religious belief is declining faster than attendance at services in the UK, according to a new study funded by the ESRC which found that parents' beliefs, practices and affiliations have the biggest impact on children....
Oral meds good for controlling Type II diabetes in children
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Oral medications may control symptoms of Type II diabetes in children just as well as insulin injections, a new study reports. According to the medical records of 26 children diagnosed with the disease, oral medications...
Walking to school encourages more physical activity
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Adolescents who walk to and from school have higher overall physical activity levels throughout the day compared with those who travel by car, bus, or train. Read more from this post....
August 16, 2005
Many Older Americans Engage in Caregiving Activities
From The Urban Institute: This brief examines caregiving activities by adults age 55 and older using data from the 2002 Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Nearly 40 percent of people 55 and older and about 50 percent of people 55...
Older Adults' Engagement Should Be Recognized and Encouraged
From The Urban Institute: This brief examines the types and intensity of engagement among adults age 55 and older using data from the 2002 Health and Retirement Study (HRS). The results show high levels of engagement, with 80 percent of...
Study Peers Behind the Scenes at Federal Funding of Faith-Based Groups
From The Urban Institute: A new study concludes that Bush administration efforts to expand faith-based contracting via targeted initiatives are changing the nature of social services supported directly with federal funds far more than has legislation passed in the mid-1990s....
Updated Consumer Guide to Resolving Health Plan Disputes
From The Kaiser Family Foundation: This new consumer guide from the Kaiser Family Foundation and Consumers Union provides detailed information about how consumers can resolve disputes with their health plans. It includes a new section about experiences with state external...
Medicare and Medicaid at 40
From The Kaiser Family Foundation: The Medicare and Medicaid health coverage programs were signed into law July 30, 1965. The Kaiser Family Foundation has produced some new resources that examine how the programs came into existence and how they have...
7-Eleven, AGs Reach Deal on Teen Tobacco Sales
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: Convenience-store chain 7-Eleven has agreed to tighten ID checks on tobacco buyers and take other steps to prevent sales to underage smokers. Read more from this post....
Can CAFTA save apparel and textile producers?
From Economic Policy Institute: Some proponents of CAFTA believe that it will stimulate apparel industryemployment in Central America and, as a result, the U.S. textile industriesthat supply them with raw material. Such arguments ignore one major factor that has derailed...
Federal Policy on the Ground: Faith-Based Organizations Delivering Local Services
From The Urban Institute: This study examines the devolution of federal policies regarding faith-based involvement in three HHS programs covered by "Charitable Choice" provisions--Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT), and the Community Services Block...
Who Receives Homeownership Tax Deductions and How Much?
From The Urban Institute: Some of the costliest tax expenditures the federal government allows go to subsidizing homeownership. In 2004, the total tax expenditure value of the mortgage interest deduction was $70.2 billion while the value for the real estate...
Resident Participation in Seattle's Jobs-Plus Program
From MDRC: Seattle Jobs-Plus - part of an MDRC national research demonstration designed to promote employment among public housing residents - succeeded in engaging a majority of residents, many of whom were immigrants from diverse parts of the world, in...
The Interaction of Child Support and TANF
From MDRC: This study suggests that child support can be an important income source and can help welfare recipients move toward self-sufficiency. More generous distribution rules increase payment rates, but many parents still do not understand the distribution rules. Read...
Promoting Work in Public Housing
From MDRC: Jobs-Plus, an ambitious employment program inside some of the nation's poorest inner-city public housing developments, markedly increased the earnings of residents in the sites where it was implemented well. Read more from this post....
Stability and Change in Child Care and Employment
From MDRC: In a study of over 3,500 women in welfare-to-work programs in three states, child care instability did not appear to be a major cause of employment instability. Read more from this post....
August 15, 2005
Recovery Month PSAs Highlight Success of Alcohol and Drug Treatment
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration unveils Recovery Month PSAs which will highlight the need for alcohol and drug treatment and recovery, as well as honor treatment providers and people in recovery....
New study examines disadvantaged people and medical care
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: A new pilot study out of the University of Cincinnati takes a new look at how patients deal with disparities in patient medical care – disparities that have been documented in hundreds of studies in...
Disasters do not necessarily affect minorities disproportionately
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: While it has long been assumed in the disaster research community that individuals with fewer resources are more likely to suffer in a disaster -- and it is true that non-whites, the poor, and females...
Childhood predictors of smoking in adolescence
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: The smoking rate among adolescents in the context of anti-smoking campaigns is troubling. Predictor of teenage smoking that are commonly cited are parental smoking during childhood, peer pressure during adolescence, and larger lung volumes. Becklake...
As congregations shrink, half of children with two religious parents reject church
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Findings of a new study by Dr David Voas of The University of Manchester, funded by the ESRC, suggest that religious belief is declining faster than attendance at services in the UK, and that parents'...
New Study Links Childhood Poverty, Heart Attacks in Women
From Ascribe Newsfeed: Women with disadvantaged childhoods are more likely to have a heart attack in old age, but men who grow up under similar conditions are not, according to a new study by Duke University sociologists. The peer-reviewed study,...
Planning Community-Based Facilities for Violent Juvenile Offenders as Part of a System of Graduated Sanctions
Planning Community-Based Facilities for Violent Juvenile Offenders as Part of a System of Graduated Sanctions The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) announces the availability of "Planning Community-Based Facilities for Violent Juvenile Offenders as Part of a System...
August 14, 2005
Treatment Grants for Former Juvenile Inmates
From Substance Abuse Funding News: About $19.2 million in grants over four years were awarded by the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration for programs to treat alcohol and other drug abuse among juveniles and young adults returning from prison....
Anti-Gang Strategies Lack Unity (washingtonpost.com)
From Yahoo! News: Top Stories: washingtonpost.com - Six months after he served more than a year in jail for disposing of a body in a gang-related killing in Montgomery County, Nelson Bernal was back on the streets, lying in wait...
Rulings Trim Legal Leeway Given Medicaid Recipients
From NYT > Washington: In a series of rulings, federal judges are limiting the ability of poor people to turn to the courts to fight for Medicaid benefits. The judges, following guidance from the Supreme Court, are ruling that Medicaid...
Money can buy you happiness but only relative to your peer's income
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Financially richer people tend to be happier than poorer people, according to sociological researcher Glenn Firebaugh, Pennsylvania State University, and graduate student Laura Tach, Harvard University. Their research is focused on whether the income effect...
Parents can help teens choose 'good' friends, study finds
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: While parents often worry about the influence peers have on their adolescent children, a new study indicates that they can play a role in helping their teens choose 'good' friends. The results showed teens are...
Prenatal alcohol exposure can lead to lasting changes in cognitive processing
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Prenatal alcohol exposure is often linked to slower cognitive reaction times and poorer attention. A new study investigates cognitive function and speed as tasks become more complex.Findings indicate that alcohol-exposed children can perform as well...
Family environment is a significant predictor of adolescent obesity
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Parents have a strong influence over whether or not their children will become overweight or obese, and it's not just their genes that they pass on. Read more from this post....
August 12, 2005
Smokers More to Blame than Tobacco Cos. for Illness, Americans Say
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: A Gallup poll released by CNN and USA Today found that despite years of revelations about deceptive marketing by the tobacco industry, many Americans still believe that smokers are more to blame for smoking-related...
Back-to-School Expert: Maryland Education Professor Sees Challenges, Opportunities This School Year
From Ascribe Newsfeed: Read more from this post....
August 11, 2005
AMA Joins Tenn. Physicians to Urge U.S. Congressional Action to Halt Medicare Cuts; Brings Medicare 'House Call' Campaign to Tennessee
From U.S. Newswire Releases: AMA Joins Tennessee Physicians to Urge U.S. Congressional Action to Halt Medicare Cuts Read more from this post....
Key research findings show family therapy is an effective treatment tool for children
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Family-based treatments are effective for substance abuse and conduct disorders in children and adolescents, according to a new, ten-year research review. The treatment also helps reduce the behavior problems associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder...
Congress Considers Cuts to Vital Services and More Tax Cuts
National Women's Law Center As was reported in the May 4th E-Update, the 2006 Congressional budget resolution includes instructions to cut (through the reconciliation process) at least $34.7 billion over the next five years to vital supports like Medicaid and...
Risky Business: South Carolina's Medicaid Waiver Proposal
From Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: On June 7, 2005, South Carolina requested federal permission to undertake what would constitute the most radical changes ever made in a state Medicaid program. The request, which took the form of a...
AMA Polls Underscore Teen Drinking Epidemic, Need for Community-Based Solutions
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: The Marin Institute is calling for a nationwide, community-based response to the country's underage drinking epidemic in light of two polls released today by the American Medical Association. Read more from this post....
FIVE-STATE FOOD STAMP BLOCK GRANT PROPOSAL IN HOUSE WELFARE BILL
From Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: The House welfare reauthorization bill (H.R. 240) contains a proposal to allow five states to elect a food stamp block grant in lieu of the regular federal Food Stamp Program. A block grant,...
The Superwaiver Would Cause Serious Damage To The Food Stamp Program And Place Benefits For Low-Income Families At Risk
From Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: The House of Representatives' TANF reauthorization bill (H.R. 240) contains a proposal to grant sweeping authority to the Executive Branch to waive, at a governor's request, most provisions of federal law related to...
Online Information About Key Low-Income Benefit Programs
From Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: Virtually all states have made information regarding the five main state-administered low-income benefit programs - food stamps, Medicaid, SCHIP, TANF and child care — available to the public via the internet. There is...
August 10, 2005
Instructional Coaches Mentor Teachers, Improve Student Achievement
From Ascribe Newsfeed: When teachers in the Topeka Public Schools return to their classes this fall, they will have the benefit of coaches from the University of Kansas helping them to identify and use the best teaching practices available. For...
Civic Engagement Is Focus for Ursinus College New Student Orientation
From Ascribe Newsfeed: Read more from this post....
Genetics may affect how older adults respond to exercise
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: New research suggests why some older adults who exercise have better physical function than others. Surprisingly, researchers found that an enzyme involved in blood pressure regulation may also influence how the body responds to exercise....
Penn physician urges revision of HIV-testing policies
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: In a commentary piece in the August 10th issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, Scott D. Halpern, MD, PhD, of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, calls for a revision of...
Exercise aside, genes may ultimately dictate seniors' mobility
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Of nearly 3,000 seniors studied, those who exercised stayed healthier than their couch potato peers, but those born with a certain gene benefited the most from physical activity. Read more from this post....
Consumers Should Spend as Much Time Making Health Care Decisions as They Do Buying Automobiles, Says Consumer Reports Medical Guide
From Ascribe Newsfeed: A new article at http://www.ConsumerReportsMedicalGuide.org discusses treatment choices in health care that are often controversial and confusing, and the need for patients to be integrally involved in decision making about treatments. While Consumer Reports is most known...
Childhood cancers strongly linked to air pollution in early life
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Childhood cancers are strongly linked to pollution from engine exhausts, concludes research in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. Read more from this post....
New survey: Recent rise in whooping cough among teens great concern for school nurses
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: A new survey supported by the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) reveals that almost 90 percent of polled school nurses are concerned about the recent surge in pertussis (whooping cough) outbreaks among adolescents. In...
August 09, 2005
What Does the Safety Net Accomplish? New Series of Reports With State-by-State Data
From Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: Public benefit programs cut the number of poor Americans nearly in half (from 58 million to 31 million) and dramatically reduce the severity of poverty for those who remain poor, while providing health...
UC Berkeley Business School to Host Nation's Leading Research Prize in Socially Responsible Investing
From Ascribe Newsfeed: The University of California at Berkeley's Haas School of Business, in partnership with the Social Investment Forum, announced today that the Moskowitz Prize - the only global award recognizing outstanding quantitative work on socially responsible investing -...
Lower Costs Seen for Premium in Medicare Drug Benefit Plan
From NYT > Health: The White House said the average premium for the new Medicare drug benefit would be $32.20 a month, about $5 less than previously estimated. Read more from this post....
Community Service Learning Makes Strides at California State University
From Ascribe Newsfeed: The California State University, a national leader in the field of community service learning, is a pioneer in developing a systemwide approach to the issue. Its effect upon the state is significant and growing. Each year CSU...
No link between multiple childhood vaccinations and hospitalization for nontargeted diseases
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: New research does not support a belief that children receiving multiple vaccines increase their risk of hospitalization for a nontargeted infectious disease, according to a study in the August 10 issue of JAMA. Read more...
August 08, 2005
Mich. Law Forcing Young People to Take Alcohol Tests Challenged
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a lawsuit to challenge the only state law requiring pedestrians under age 21 to submit to an alcohol test absent a police search warrant. Read more...
Lumina Foundation for Education Announces Second-Quarter 2005 Grants
From Ascribe Newsfeed: Lumina Foundation for Education announced today 61 grant approvals totaling about $19 million to organizations across the country that expand college access and student success. "The Foundation continues to address the multiple barriers that impede access to...
American Institutes for Research Provides Guidance on Free Tutoring Offered Under No Child Left Behind Act; Releases New Toolkit for Parents and Community Leaders
From Ascribe Newsfeed: The American Institutes for Research (AIR) has developed and released a new toolkit that offers parents and community leaders tips, tools, and strategies to learn more about free tutoring for students in schools designated as needing improvement...
August 07, 2005
Drug Court Judge Disputes Disease Model
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: An Indiana judge who oversees an eight-year-old drug court program commented during a Superior Court sentencing of a drunk driver that alcoholism is not a disease, The Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne, Ind.) reported July...
SAMHSA Awards Grants for Adolescent Substance Abuse Coordination
From Substance Abuse Funding News: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has awarded 16 grants to various states for the development of better alcohol and other drug abuse treatment, prevention, and infrastructure. Read more from this post....
Grants for Alcohol, HIV/AIDS Risk Reduction
From Substance Abuse Funding News: The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism along with the National Institute of Mental Health, is calling for applications to research structural interventions to reduce HIV/AIDS transmission by "changing the environment of alcohol use."...
CBPP to Hold Conference Call Briefing: Assessing South Carolina's Medicaid Proposal
From U.S. Newswire Releases: The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities will host a media conference call briefing on Wednesday, Aug. 10 at 1 p.m. (ET) to discuss two new analyses of South Carolina's request for federal permission to replace...
Plaintiffs Score Major Victory in No Child Left Behind English Learner Lawsuit Against State of California
From U.S. Newswire Releases: Today, United States District Court Judge William Alsup granted plaintiffs' motion to remand the No Child Left Behind English Learner assessment litigation back to State Superior Court in San Francisco. Plaintiffs, including a broad coalition of...
August 04, 2005
MADD: Decline In Alcohol-Related Traffic Fatalities is Promising
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: The National Highway Traffic Safety Admin. reports alcohol-related traffic fatalities declined 2.4 percent from 2003 to 2004. Mothers Against Drunk Driving cites primary seat belt laws, law enforcement and .08 BAC as keys to...
New patient safety website launched
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: More people die as a result of medical errors than from other common causes of death including motor vehicle crashes, breast cancer, and AIDS. Read more from this post....
On Its 12th Anniversary, Family & Medical Leave Act Is at Risk; Department of Labor Changes, Next Supreme Court Justice May Mean Fewer Americans Have Access to FMLA Protections
From Ascribe Newsfeed: The Family & Medical Leave Act was a godsend," according to one Atlanta-based mother who used the law to care for her teenage daughter, who was fighting a losing battle against cancer. Since its enactment 12 years...
Mothers face disadvantages in getting hired, study shows
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Mothers looking for employment face more disadvantages -- including lower pay and a perception that they would be less committed to a job -- than fathers and non-mothers, Cornell researchers Shelley J. Correll and Stephen...
'I'm a Kid Too' project completes first phase
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: I'm a Kid Too is a project that allows "medically fragile" young people to use photography as a creative outlet to express their stories. Developed by a professor in the University of Kentucky College of...
August 03, 2005
UCSF study finds English proficiency a major hurdle in patient comprehension
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Limited efficiency with the English language is a barrier to medical comprehension and increases the risk of adverse medication reactions, according to a recent study led by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco....
Obesity lowers likelihood of receiving preventive health care
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Obese people are less likely to receive preventive services such as mammograms, Pap smears and flu shots from health care providers, according to an analysis of health care data by Duke University Medical Center researchers....
AMA Joins Florida Physicians to Urge Congressional Action to Halt Medicare Cuts; AMA Brings Medicare 'House Call' Campaign to Tampa
From U.S. Newswire Releases: Read more from this post....
Malnutrition and obesity increasingly co-exist in global community
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: While nutritional status has improved worldwide over the past fifty years, new nutrition-related problems have also emerged. In an article published in the Journal of Nutrition, Eileen Kennedy DSc, RD, dean of the Friedman School...
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Develops Task Force to Combat ADHD In Children; Answers Community's Cry for Help
From Ascribe Newsfeed: Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center has teamed up with local pediatricians and family practitioners to treat children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The newly launched effort, which is funded by a $1.8 million grant from the...
August 02, 2005
Drug Use Among Ind. Youth Sees Biggest Drop In Years
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: A new report on alcohol, tobacco and other drug use by the Indiana Prevention Resource Center demonstrates a significant downward trend in youth drug use and includes the agency's first collection of data on...
Satisfaction and Engagement in Retirement
From The Urban Institute: This brief analyzes patterns of engagement among retirees and how engagement relates to their retirement satisfaction using data from the 2002 Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Engaged retirees are significantly more likely to be satisfied with...
Turning Welfare into a Work Support
From MDRC: While positive effects on most parents' earnings and income faded after six years, young children in some of the most disadvantaged families were still performing better in school than their counterparts in a control group. And, for the...
New Poll Gauges Baton Rouge's Job Situation; Public Education is Key Priority; 'Good Job' Means Living Wages and Health Benefits
From U.S. Newswire Releases: Baton Rouge residents believe that the area is heading in the right direction, are proud of their city and give their institutions of higher learning and local hospitals top scores as key selling points for economic...
Preschoolers who take responsibility do better later on
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Children whose parents listen to their perspective and encourage them to make decisions do better in school--academically and socially. Read more from this post....
Connect for Kids Announces 'Speak Out' Youth Essay Winners
From Ascribe Newsfeed: More than 70 young people from 22 states participated in the first-ever Connect for Kids Youth Essay Contest. "Speak Out! Let Your Voice Be Heard" allows teens to share their ideas on what policy makers need to...
Community, Business Leaders Announce Restoration of the Children's Health Insurance Program, Launch Citywide Campaign to Enroll Kids in Health Care Coverage
From U.S. Newswire Releases: On August 4, 2005, the Children's Defense Fund of Texas and the Gulf Coast CHIP Coalition will launch an intensive month-long push to enroll eligible, uninsured children in the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and Children's...
Court Finds Bias in Policy of Schools for Hawaiians
From NYT > National: The Kamehameha Schools in Hawaii are practicing unlawful race discrimination by restricting enrollment to native Hawaiian children, a federal appeals court ruled. Read more from this post....
What Does the Safety Net Accomplish
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities This series of reports examines the research on the impacts and accomplishments of government programs that assist low-income families and individuals. Each report includes state-by-state data on the number of the people assisted by...
Are there national patterns of teaching?
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Why do teachers today teach as they do, and why has teaching evolved in the way that it has evolved? And are these instructional methods global or shaped by national culture? A new study published...
NCAA Recruiting Young Audience for Beer Ads
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: The Center for Science in the Public Interest has released a report calling for the National Collegiate Athletic Association to rid its telecasts of alcohol advertising. Read more from this post....
Providers Decry Lack of Treatment Services for Ark. Youth
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: With only 49 residential beds available statewide in Arkansas for youth with substance abuse problems, officials with one residential provider agency are working with policy leaders to promote development of more treatment-focused programs. Read...
Mexico Surpasses Colombia as Top Supplier of Drugs in U.S.
From Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco News: Mexican drug traffickers are now the dominant presence in the U.S. illegal drug market, in what has become the largest shift of the drug trade since the emergence of the Colombian cartels in the...
August 01, 2005
Individuals with severe mental illness at high risk to be victims of crime
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: More than one fourth of individuals with severe mental illness (SMI) were victims of violent crime in the past year, eleven times the rate in the general population, according to a study in the August...
Growing Racial Disparity in Breast, Colorectal Cancer Deaths Over Past Decade; Significant Gaps Between Blacks and Whites Despite Overall Improvements vs. Cancer; Cancer Survivor Harry Belafonte Calls for Greater Community Awareness
From U.S. Newswire Releases: Despite an overall decline in cancer deaths for all Americans regardless of race, 36 percent more black men and 17 percent more black women are dying from cancer than their white counterparts, finds a new study...
Girls who were victims of violence more likely to commit violent acts
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Girls who report previous violence victimization are more than twice as likely to report engaging in violent behavior, according to a study in the August issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of...