On December 1, 2016,  President Barack Obama issued a proclamation recognizing World AIDS Day.  He stated that “by shining a light on this issue and educating more communities about the importance of testing and treatment, we have saved and improved lives. Although we have come far in recent decades, our work is not yet done and the urgency to intervene in ... Read More »

Friday, March 23 marks the two-year anniversary of the passage of the nation’s health care law, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and next week the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments on whether it is constitutional, with a ruling expected early this summer.  Social workers strongly support the law because it makes vital improvements to health care access, quality and ... Read More »

Political Climate Presidential Race—GOP Primary Now that several Republican primaries and caucuses have taken place, Mitt Romney has taken a considerable—though not insurmountable—lead over his nearest competitors.  Super Tuesday’s most crucial state was Ohio, which Romney narrowly won.  With Rick Santorum winning three states and coming close in Ohio, along with Newt Gingrich’s victory in Georgia, Romney still has not ... Read More »

The Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently held a Listening Session on LGBT and HIV/AIDS Issues.  The meeting, comprised of stakeholders from LGBT organizations and HIV/AIDS organizations, as well as larger membership organizations such as the National Association of Social Workers (NASW), was convened by Director, Leon Rodriquez.  During the meeting, Director Rodriquez stressed the ... Read More »

On February 17, Congress passed the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, H.R. 3630 which includes a provision to extend the TANF program through September 30, 2012. This was not a clean extension, meaning there were changes to the program included. The first change requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to set (by ... Read More »

On Monday, February 13, President Obama released his fiscalyear 2013 budget proposal. It includes $3.67 trillion in new budget authority, a 3.7 percent reduction from 2012 levels. It includes $1.15 trillion in discretionary spending and $2.27 trillion in mandatory spending. You can find information about the budget on the White House web site. Read More »

NASW Submits Recommendations on EHB On January 31, NASW sent the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recommendations to strengthen the Essential Health Benefits (EHB). NASW made a strong appeal for a comprehensive, uniform set of national health benefits, and suggested that weak, state-based EHB packages will harm low-income and vulnerable individuals.  NASW also appealed to DHHS for development of ... Read More »

Political Climate Now that the calendar has turned to 2012, the upcoming election cycle has begun to gain steam.  The Iowa caucus and the New Hampshire primary are behind us, Republican candidates are looking down the road at the South Carolina primary.  Pieces will begin falling into place as the President continues fundraising, the Republicans move closer to declaring a ... Read More »

Health Action 2012, the conference for consumer health advocates, will be held at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC from January 19-21, 2012. Health Action 2012 is sponsored by Families USA and NASW has been a regular cosponsor and attendee at the conference. Health Action 2012 will provide advocates from across the country with the knowledge ... Read More »

In late December, Congress passed the payroll tax extension which included a provision to extend Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) through February. Under the measure, TANF is extended at fiscal 2011 levels of $16.5 billion per year. NASW is supporting the RISE Out of Poverty Act (H.R. 3573) which aims to reduce child poverty by permanently authorizing the TANF ... Read More »