Health care has been an ongoing issue of public concern for decades, well before President Obama took office. Passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, in March 2010 and upheld by a Supreme Court in June 2012. With Republicans now in control of both the House and Senate as well as the presidency, the ACA in its current…

The magazine of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) often relies on problematic rhetorics that privilege youth-centered ideals and create limited representations of older adults' literacy in digital times. These rhetorics rest on a metaphor of repair, which labels aging adults as primarily bodies in need of fixing or protection. In…

Higher Education needs to give more broad-based attention to health and wellness. Our graduates will all have to deal with the facts that the general state of health of Americans is not good and our national health care system is badly in need of reform. We should offer innovative approaches to helping our graduates establish positive, lifetime…

Senator Edward M. Kennedy responds to questions concerning health care issues, his goals related to them, and his view of the role of allied health professionals in addressing these issues. (JOW)

Two concerns that underlie preoccupation with health care costs are that society may not be getting a "reasonable return" from increased expenditures and that the quantity of services per expenditure could be provided more cheaply. Concern arises because the "market" for health care deviates significantly from other "free…

This testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Budget discussed Medicaid coverage of children with disabilities and the proposed Family Opportunity Act of 2000 that would create a new state option to allow parents who have a child with a severe disability or a potentially severe disability to purchase health care coverage for the child…

Recommendations resulting from a 1977 conference, "Health Policy, Health Planning and Financing the Future of Health Care for Blacks in America," are presented. The recommendations concern changes in the health care system, community involvement, government regulation, the formation of Black interest groups and lobbies, and support for national…

This article discusses implications of the movement toward managed health care models for long-term health care services for people with disabilities, especially people with developmental disabilities. It notes possible advantages of managed care but raises issues concerning consumer choice, management and financial capacity of managed care…

This article addresses the lack of access to low-vision rehabilitation services by individuals needing them, due to lack of coverage by public or private health insurance. Improved insurance coverage would result in improved access as well as more direct referrals by ophthalmologists, more consumer choice, more timely rehabilitation, reduced…

Describes the Children's Health Matters project, which helps eligible families enroll their uninsured children in Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Lists strategies to be used by Catholic schools: connect children to health insurance through the School Lunch Program; distribute outreach materials; discuss this issue at…

Americans must accept the notion that each and every American is responsible for each and every child and the United States must develop a national children's policy encompassing concerns that influence children's health. There are at least four fundamental steps that the United States can take to improve children's health in the 1990s. They are:…

There are 16.4 million women over age 65 in this country, compared to 11 million men. The 41 percent of this population who live alone are the poorest of the poor in this country, with an annual median income of just over $3,000 for white women and little more than $2,000 for black women. This abject poverty affects the ability of these women to…

This report discusses the health care needs of and benefits for women, children, and adolescents in light of national health care reform proposals put forth in 1994, and is based on presentations and discussions at an invitational workshop on maternal and child health. The report asserts that since women and children are disproportionately…

Discusses the history of coverage of vision-related rehabilitation by health insurance and identifies opportunities for expanded coverage within the rapidly changing health care environment. Reviews strategies for persuading health insurance plans to fund vision-related rehabilitation, including educating the public, reconfiguring service…

Several problems of the U.S. health care system are reviewed, including rising costs, increasing numbers of people who are uninsured, and the financial failure of public hospitals that treat uninsured patients. A plan called "Health America," which will guarantee health care for every U.S. family and control soaring health care costs, is…