State Implementation of National Health Reform: Harnessing Federal Resources to Meet State Policy Goals

Discusses state options for maximizing coverage and access to care; reforming the health insurance market; holding insurers accountable for high-quality, affordable coverage; restructuring healthcare delivery and financing; and cutting budget deficits

Handbook of Emergency Management For State-Level Transportation Agencies, MTI Report 09-10

The Department of Homeland Security has mandated specific systems and techniques for the management of emergencies in the United States, including the Incident Command System, the National Incident Management System, Emergency Operations Plans, Emergency Operations Centers, Continuity of Government Plans and Continuity of Operations Plans. These plans and systems may be applied to the state-level transportation agency�s disaster response systems to enhance efficiency and effectiveness. Specific guidance and management techniques are provided to aid emergency planning staff to create DHS-compliant systems

Current Developments in Services for People with Intellectual Disabilities

[Taken from Executive Summary] This literature review is the culmination of the Saskatchewan Community Living Division jurisdictional study which began in the autumn of 2003. Following a brief survey of developments in providing services to people with intellectual disabilities (hitherto the People) for creating the questionnaire for this study, information was gleaned from the provinces and territories on their services. The CLD Jurisdictional Project was completed in the spring of 2005. Subsequently, a thorough search and examination of pertinent resources for serving this People and for policy development was conducted. From over 800 documents about 350 were selected for this literature review. The material is recorded in the following chapters: Public Consultation and Policy Development; Social Philosophy: the philosophical influence on contemporary social issues; Definition of disabilities; Needs assessment systems; Human Rights; Advocacy; Community services & Deinstitutionalization; Issues and Influences; Citizenship; Inclusion; Self-determination; Person-centered planning; Supports; Respite; Individualized funding; Canadian governmental initiatives; Provincial Services

The Role of Transportation in Campus Emergency Planning, MTI Report 08-06

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina created the greatest natural disaster in American history. The states of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama sustained significant damage, including 31 colleges and universities. Other institutions of higher education, most notably Louisiana State University (LSU), became resources to the disaster area. This is just one of the many examples of disaster impacts on institutions of higher education. The Federal Department of Homeland Security, under Homeland Security Presidential Directive–5, requires all public agencies that want to receive federal preparedness assistance to comply with the National Incident Management System (NIMS), which includes the creation of an Emergency Operations Plan (EOP). Universities, which may be victims or resources during disasters, must write NIMS–compliant emergency plans. While most university emergency plans address public safety and logistics management, few adequately address the transportation aspects of disaster response and recovery. This MTI report describes the value of integrating transportation infrastructure into the campus emergency plan, including planning for helicopter operations. It offers a list of materials that can be used to educate and inform campus leadership on campus emergency impacts, including books about the Katrina response by LSU and Tulane Hospital, contained in the report´s bibliography. It provides a complete set of Emergency Operations Plan checklists and organization charts updated to acknowledge lessons learned from Katrina, 9/11 and other wide–scale emergencies. Campus emergency planners can quickly update their existing emergency management documents by integrating selected annexes and elements, or create new NIMS–compliant plans by adapting the complete set of annexes to their university´s structures

International Research Project on Job Retention and Return to Work Strategies for Disabled Workers: Canada

[Excerpt] The International Research Project on Job Retention and Return to Work Strategies for Disabled Workers is an initiative of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Global Applied Research and Information Network on Employment and Training (GLADNET). It reflects ILO and GLADNET joint aims of establishmg a base for cross-national research and strengthening links between research analysis and policy reform in the field of employment of disabled people. The Project is a response to a combination of developments which highlight the need for more effective policies and practices in support of workers whose prospects of remaining in employment are jeopardised by work injury, illness or disability. Persons with disabilities are increasingly claiming rights to stay in work as well as to access employment. Pressures on state budgets, the rising costs of compensation claims and disability benefits, and changes in the structure of the labour market are strengthening policies in favour of job retention and return to work. Enterprises are developing their own strategies to minimise the costs of disability and to retain valued employees. Overall, the balance of responsibility is shifting from the state to the enterprise. Policies and practices to prevent disabled workers from leaving work unnecessarily, and to facilitate rapid return to employment if job loss cannot be prevented, are recent developments in many countries. The cross-national exchange of information on initiatives and their effects is limited. The first aim of this Project has been to gather information about what has been attempted, by whom, for what purposes, in which contexts and to what effects. The second, more ambitious, aim, is to examine the interaction between the various policies and practices, identify dysfunctions, and work towards more coherent and cost-effective strategies for job retention and return to work which might be applied in different national systems. The ultimate objective is to identify strategies which can be put into effect in the workplace

Developing and Implementing Self-Direction Programs and Policies: A Handbook

Provides a guide to designing, implementing, and evaluating service delivery models that allow public program participants to manage their own care services and supports. Outlines elements of employer and budget authorities, enrollment, and counseling

Accessing Social Statistics

published or submitted for publicatio

Privacy and Health Information Technology

The increased use of health information technology (health IT) is a common element of nearly every health reform proposal because it has the potential to decrease costs, improve health outcomes, coordinate care, and improve public health. However, it raises concerns about security and privacy of medical information. This paper examines some of the “gaps” in privacy protections that arise out of the current federal health privacy standard, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) Privacy Rule, the main federal law which governs the use and disclosure of health information. Additionally, it puts forth a range of possible solutions, accompanied by arguments for and against each. The solutions provide some options for strengthening the current legal framework of privacy protections in order to build public trust in health IT and facilitate its use for health reform. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) enacted in February 2009 includes a number of changes to HIPAA and its regulations, and those changes are clearly noted among the list of solutions (and ARRA is indicated in the Executive Summary and paper where the Act has a relevant provision)

Eliminating Language Barriers for LEP Individuals: Promising Practices from the Public Sector

While the focus of this report is on eliminating language barriers for limited English proficient (LEP) individuals, any strategy to improve communications with this population must also include English learning and address the shortage of high-quality English as a Second Language (ESL) courses for adults. State-administered ESL programs currently serve only about a million of the estimated 12.4 million LEP adults in the United States who need language instruction. The underfunding of ESL programs means that large numbers of immigrant adults who wish to learn English are unable to enroll in classes or face overcrowded classrooms. For instance, a 2006 national survey of ESL providers found that 57 percent of these programs maintained waiting lists -- ranging from a few weeks to more than three years -- and could not accommodate the high numbers of immigrants interested in learning English. Policy experts and organizations that work with adult English learners have proposed various strategies to increase the availability of high-quality ESL courses, but lack of political support at the national level -- coupled with the current fiscal crisis -- has weakened efforts to help immigrants improve their English skills