The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is hosting regional listening sessions regarding essential health benefits. You are invited to attend the sessions. HHS is committed to receiving broad public input on essential health benefits from all stakeholders. Senior HHS officials will be in attendance to listen to stakeholder feedback. Please see below for the table for further details. Region City Date Time Location RSVP... 

NASW attended a briefing in which the newly released report by the Half in Ten Campaign was discussed. The Campaign has a goal of reducing poverty by half over ten years. They are using 2010 as the baseline for this effort. The report connects information on the number of people struggling to move out of poverty with the levers to increase opportunity such as more good jobs, access to financial institutions to save for... 

On Friday, October 15, the Obama administration decided to halt plans to implement the long-term care program created by the 2010 health care law after determining that financing plans were not sufficient.  For more information, please click here.  Read More →

On October 13, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that the number of participants in the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) has nearly tripled to more than 10,000 National Corps members nationwide. Established in 1972, the National Health Service Corps, administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), has provided health care to communities... 

On September 30, President Obama president signed into law the Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act that reauthorizes two important child welfare programs – Promoting Safe and Stable Families (PSSF) and the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Child Welfare Services (STJCWS) for 5 years. The law also renews waiver authority so states can test various approaches to serving children at risk of abuse or neglect... 

On September 21, the Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act, HR 2883, overwhelmingly passed in House of Representatives. This bill amends title IV part B (Child and Family Services) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to extend through FY2016 the authorization of appropriations for the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Child Welfare Services Program. It also revises requirements for child visitations by caseworkers.... 

September 23 marked the 18 – month anniversary since the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). New census numbers showed 500,000 more young adults have insurance than last year because of the ACA provision that lets parents keep their children on their plans until they are 26 years old. In addition, 18.9 million seniors have already taken advantage of the free preventive care services provided by the ACA. NASW... 

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Children’s Bureau is sponsoring a webinar for home visiting programs and partner organizations Thursday, September 22, 2011, titled “Partnerships and Collaboration in Home Visiting:  Critical Issues in Serving Families with Substance Use Disorders”, for 3:00-4:30 pm EST/ 12:00-1:30 pm PST. The webinar intends to address issues regarding the important linkages... 

On September 14, the House Rules Committee filed a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government after the 2011 Fiscal Year expires on September 30th. The CR will run until November 18, 2011 and funds the government at a level of $1.043 trillion, as established by the Budget Control Act (the debt ceiling agreement). This spending level is about $7 billion – or 1.4% – less than FY2011 levels. The House and... 

On September 15, members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), Congressional Black Caucus, and Congressional Hispanic Caucus  introduced the Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2011, a bill that complements the efforts of the Affordable Care Act and focuses on eliminating racial and ethnic health disparities. The bill was introduced by social worker, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Chair of CAPAC’s...