On March 18, Congress coupled the Student Aid bill with health reform legislation to advance President Obama’s two major domestic policy issues, the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act (H.R. 4872). NASW strongly supports this bill and has tirelessly advocated for the creation of public policies that make health care and higher education more affordable and accessible for all Americans. The... 

2009 Rates extended until March 31 Medicare Rate Remedy Makes Limited Progress Senate gridlock was halted just long enough this week to pass a brief extension of a highly troublesome Medicare provision that sets Part B payment rates for clinical social workers and all independent Medicare outpatient providers. The so-called Medicare “physician fee cut” for all Part B providers was stopped by a short-term... 

Earlier this week the White House released a summary of its $950 billion plan to reconcile the House and Senate versions of comprehensive health reform legislation. Release of the plan marks a new phase of more direct presidential involvement in the legislative negotiations. The President’s plan largely favors the Senate’s bill and clarifies use of a legislative strategy known as budget reconciliation,... 

Within four weeks of taking office, Congress presented a “stimulus package” to President Obama, who signed it.  The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is now one year old.  About half of the money has been distributed, mostly to states, as well as to extend unemployment benefits, expand eligibility for Food Stamps, support Medicaid for states.  Independent economic analyses of ARRA show where... 

In November, groups hoping for the repeal of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy were disappointed when the Senate Armed Services indefinitely postponed a long awaited hearing on the matter. However, the issue was moved to the forefront during the State of the Union speech, when President Obama uttered the words, “This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies... 

In an effort to keep you informed of the work NASW is doing on health care reform, we will periodically send out a roundup of activities. NASW offices are closed December 24 – January 1. While we will be monitoring the developments of health care reform, the next Health Care Reform Roundup will be distributed the week of January 4. Senate Breaks Logjam on Health Reform After nearly 20 days of continuous debate,... 

Take Action! S. 2837, The Child Welfare Workforce Improvement Act, was recently introduced by Senator Lincoln and aims to improve the child welfare workforce for the thousands of children and families who depend on this system every day. NASW lobbyists worked for many years to create this legislation, in collaboration with the Children’s Defense Fund and other coalition partners, and we are fully committed to... 

Several Amendments Dominate Debate in Senate on Health Care Reform There are 91 amendments to the Senate Health Care Reform bill. A list of all the Senate amendments to the Health Care Reform bill can be found here. The list is compiled by OpenLeft.com, a news, analysis and action website dedicated toward building a progressive governing majority in America. State-by State Analysis of the Impact of Health Care Reform The... 

Wednesday, December 09, 2009 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: J. Jioni Palmer WASHINGTON, D.C. – Members of the Congressional Black Caucus will be on the House Floor TONIGHT to discuss job creation in the African American community. The Special Order Hour will be anchored by CBC Chairwoman Barbara Lee (D-CA). The Special Order Hour will be broadcast on C-SPAN. WHAT: Special Order Hour on job creation in the African American... 

Dear Colleague, I am writing to ask you, and every single NASW member, to contact your members of Congress and show your full support for the Dorothy I. Height and Whitney M. Young, Jr. Social Work Reinvestment Act (H.R. 795/ S.686) . This is the first piece of federal legislation ever introduced that will directly address the workforce challenges that our profession is facing. These challenges, such as low salaries,...