The cafeteria plan for health insurance benefits employers by reducing the overall escalation of health costs. Employees benefit by tailoring their benefit packages to their needs to including the option to decline coverage because of spouse employment. (MLF)

A plan that offers college employees an incentive to contain health care insurance costs is outlined. It consists of three parts: the institution's offering of coverage for claims above a certain level; an employee deductible; and an accounting system that rewards employees for keeping health care costs down as well as involving them in management…

Reviews the changes managed health care has brought to the delivery and use of medical services and recommends specific steps that will make the existing system more responsive to the needs of children. Systemwide health care reforms must give children stable medical care that emphasizes preventive health and developmental services. (SLD)

Lays the foundation for other articles in this special issue by providing an overview of managed health care as it now operates. Children are increasingly being enrolled in such plans even though there is little information about the effects of managed health care on this population. (SLD)

Describes the federal Children's Health Insurance Program, designed to provide free or low-cost health insurance to children in uninsured families with low or moderate incomes. Outlines state innovations in providing outreach to eligible families. Maintains that active early-childhood community involvement is critical to state's efforts to reach…

"Authorized" genetic testing may be obtained from employees with coercion or threat. Unless protections are put in place, employers and health insurers will use genetic screening to hire and fire. (JOW)

School business officials should attend workshops and seminars to help them plan for retirement. When approaching retirement, SBOs should invest for low-risk growth, determine retirement goals, match insurance with needs, and decide when to stop full-time work. Retirees should invest for growth and income, withdraw assets at the right time, and…

Reports that more than 10 million children in the United States are without health care, most of whom can obtain help through such organizations as Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Discusses connecting health care with school lunch programs, and states that the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA) is working on…

The Human Genome Initiative (HGI) constructs common resources for studying human genetics. Early identification of people at risk for genetic disorders allows for early education and counseling. HGI research will create inexpensive, reliable genetic tests and diagnoses to help teachers and school staff assess, compare, and channel students. (SM)

Forty managed care managers were surveyed concerning provision of mental health care in reimbursement for counseling of gifted children and families. Fourteen case managers were also interviewed. Results indicated that some case managers would approve reimbursement for problems resulting from giftedness whereas others would not. Criteria and…

Purpose: Nursing facilities with nurse practitioners or physician assistants (NPs or PAs) have been reported to provide better care to residents. Assuming that freestanding nursing homes in urban areas that employ these professionals are making an investment in medical infrastructure, we test the hypotheses that facilities in states with higher…

Purpose: Our objective in this study was to compare the quality of care provided under the Minnesota Senior Health Options (MSHO), a special program designed to serve dually eligible older persons, to care provided to controls who received fee-for-service Medicare and Medicaid managed care. Design and Methods: Two control groups were used; one was…

Context: Rural residents are disproportionately represented among the uninsured in the United States. Purpose: We compared nonelderly adult residents in 3 types of nonmetropolitan areas with metropolitan workers to evaluate which characteristics contribute to lack of employment-related insurance. Research Design and Analysis: Data were obtained…

Despite advances in early detection and prevention of cervical cancer, women living in rural areas, and particularly in Appalachia, the rural South, the Texas-Mexico border, and the central valley of California, have had consistently higher rates of cervical cancer mortality than their counterparts in other areas during the past several decades.…

This article is a reprint of the National Association of School Nurses' "Issue Brief" on Privacy Standards for Student Health Records. It distinguishes between the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HI-PAA), clarifies which of these laws governs the privacy of…