Preliminary results from the Health Care Reform Tracking Project's baseline survey and site visits to 10 states show that managed care has generally improved access to health care for children, but it has made it more difficult for youths with serious emotional disorders, and uninsured children, to obtain care. (SLD)

Reviews the basic decisions states must make when implementing State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) programs and reports on the decisions states participating in this federal program have made, as reflected in the plans they submitted to the Health Care Financing Administration. Sources of information about the program are included.…

Examines the integration of health care and education in the schools with the advent of managed care. Effects of these changes, such as schools billing health care third-party payors and the expansion of speech language services to areas such as dysphagia and alternative/augmentative communication, are discussed. (DB)

Community service can raise students' self-esteem, develop moral character, and help students feel part of their community. However, school leaders need to be aware of the potential pitfalls associated with mandating community service. These include liability, cost, logistical hassles, and possible negative psychological effects on students. (MLF)

Estimates of the costs and consequences of many types of public policy proposals play an important role in the development and adoption of particular policy programs. Estimates of the same, or similar, policies that employ different modeling approaches can yield widely divergent results. Such divergence often undermines effective policymaking.…

Despite growing research on the positive connections between work and family, antecedents and consequences of work-family enrichment are understudied. Using a sample of employees from a major insurance company, we assessed the relationship of (i) individual (i.e., work and family identities), (ii) family (emotional and instrumental support), and…

This article explores how labor market trends and current employment assistance policies affect reemployment opportunities and emotional well-being in a sample of female dislocated apparel workers. The study follows the displaced women from the time the plant closed for 6 months to assess their financial and emotional well-being as they reentered…

We analyzed the effects of the Colorado Medicaid Capitation Program on the duration and services of over 21,000 outpatient mental health episodes for young children. The study spanned a three year period before and after capitation was implemented, and compared episodes of outpatient care for children from 14 capitated Community Mental Health…

Since April 2003, school nurse and school health officials have been clamoring for guidance on how the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Family Education Rights Privacy Act (FERPA) interface in the school environment. This article provides an up-to-date explanation of how school health leaders are interpreting the…

Medicare, as a publicly funded insurance program, has produced significant improvement in the overall health of America's elderly populations. However, health disparities still persist between Hispanic and non-Hispanic White populations in terms of overall access to health services. This study utilized data from the Hispanic Established Population…

Under Israeli law, national health insurance covers basic health care for all of the nation's residents, but health services users have to copay for medications and therapy. This study examined whether the requirement to copay for therapy services among certain subpopulations influences their compliance with meeting rehabilitation therapy…

Managed care has profound effects on health and mental health service delivery in the United States. This article describes the knowledge that students need for effective social work practice within a managed care environment and evaluates a course to deliver the content. (Contains 3 tables.)

Allies Against Asthma, a working group of the Consortium for Infant and Child Health (CINCH), conducted a comprehensive asthma needs assessment in Hampton Roads, Virginia, in 2001. Results from extant data and parent surveys indicated that asthma prevalence was high (15% to 18%), 45% to 50% of children received primary care for asthma in the…

This paper analyzes how variation in participant take-up rates affected the impacts of the New Hope project, a random-assignment, anti-poverty program. New Hope offered experimental members four benefits--child care subsidies, wage subsidies, health insurance, and, if needed, a temporary community service job--that were available to families…

As of March 2008, over half of U.S. states are facing projected budget shortfalls for the coming fiscal year. During economic downturns such as this, opportunities available to hard-working, low-wage families are diminished. These conditions create growing concerns for policymakers who must, with fewer state resources, enhance opportunities and…