Tag Archives: health

November 6, 2014 NASW continues its support for National Family Caregivers Month this November. This year’s theme, Care Comes Home, emphasizes the benefits and challenges of caregiving at home—where most caregiving takes place. Download outreach materials from the Caregiver Action Network (previously known as the National Family Caregivers Association) and use NASW materials, listed below, to illustrate the social work ... Read More »

By Paul R. Pace, News staff The Affordable Care Act has brought about a “huge opportunity” for behavioral care in the U.S., said Ron Manderscheid, co-chairman of the Coalition for Whole Health. All health insurance plans sold on the federal and state insurance exchanges must offer 10 essential health benefits, or EHBs, to their enrollees, including mental health and substance-use ... Read More »

NASW celebrated the news that the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 includes funding to continue and expand the Leadership Training in Social Work program. For more than 40 years, the Maternal and Child Health Bureau provided grants to train social work leaders. In 2012, grantees learned that the MCHB was not planning to continue to fund several discipline-specific grants, including ... Read More »

Two social workers have been selected to serve as 2014 Practice Change Leaders for Aging and Health, a national program that works to develop, support and expand the influence of organizational leaders who are committed to achieving transformative improvements in care for older adults. The social workers are Cindy Tack, director of care coordination at the MMC Physician-Hospital Organization in ... Read More »

Social workers encouraged to promote consumer enrollment in ACA health exchange plans One out of every six Americans is currently living without insurance. Close to 80 percent of the uninsured are in working families. Affordable health care insurance is now available through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) health exchanges. Consumers can enroll in ACA health insurance plans until March 31st.  ... Read More »

NASW continues its support for National Family Caregivers Month this November. This year’s theme, Family Caregivers—Now More Than Ever!, highlights family caregivers’ growing role in supporting people of all ages who live with chronic conditions or disabilities. NASW resources: NASW Standards for Social Work Practice with Family Caregivers of Older Adults Family caregiving information and resources on NASW’s consumer Web ... Read More »

By Paul R. Pace, News staff Social worker Jack Sarmanian says the personal rewards of being a disaster mental health worker far outweigh the challenges. The Maine resident was among a group of disaster mental health workers with the American Red Cross deployed to Moore, Okla., in May. A devastating EF-5 tornado ravaged the surrounding community, resulting in 25 deaths ... Read More »

By Rena Malai, News staff The Council on Social Work Education hosted a White House briefing in September called “Addressing the Social Determinants of Health in a New Era: The Role of Social Work Education.” The briefing’s purpose was to increase awareness of the part social workers and social work education will play as health care reform unfolds. “The White ... Read More »

By Rena Malai, News staff The National Coalition on Mental Health and Aging has developed talking points to ensure that older adults’ mental health is included in the national Community Conversations on Mental Health. NASW is a member of the coalition. The talking points are important, because older adults’ mental health is often under addressed in discussions about aging and ... Read More »

By Paul R. Pace, News staff The NASW Legal Defense Fund has updated NASW’s sample forms and information materials that highlight the latest rules of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued the 2013 Omnibus HIPAA Final Rule in January. At press time, enforcement of the rule was set ... Read More »