Reality Check: The DRA\u27s Impact on Seniors with Disabilities and Their Caregivers

This article discusses the hardships on seniors with disabilities who are unable to qualify for Medicaid under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. The author argues for the repeal of the DRA and calls for policymakers and politicians to work towards a long-term care financing scheme that fairly distributes the costs of long term care across the broader population. The author begins by laying out the arguments that the nation cannot afford the cost of long-term care for the elderly and disabled, their entitlement to such care should be minimized, and individuals should plan for their own healthcare. The author then goes on to dispute the previous arguments and contends that there must be more exploration of the different options that could create a fiscally and morally responsible way to pay for the long-term care needs of the nation\u27s increasing elderly

Structural Conservation Practices in U.S. Corn Production: Evidence on Environmental Stewardship by Program Participants and Non-Participants

This study used the 2005 ERS CEAP-ARMS data for corn production to first compare key operator, field, farm, economic, and environmental characteristics of conservation program participants with non-participants, by farm-size class. We then estimate a cost-function based technology adoption model of producer decisions regarding the allocation of field-level acres between corn production and infield and perimeter-field conservation structures to examine how these conservation choices differ between program participants and non-participants, while accounting for differences in other field, farm, and environmental factors. Our null hypothesis is that the average conservation structural practice acres across U.S. corn acres supplied by growers participating in a conservation program are not different from non-participants. Infield conservation structures include terraces, grassed waterways, vegetative buffers, contour buffers, filter strips, and grade stabilization structures. Perimeter-field conservation structures include hedgerow plantings, stream-side forest and herbaceous buffers, windbreaks and herbaceous wind barriers, field borders, and critical area plantings. Because the dependent variable in this analysis is continuous, we use a Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) procedure to estimate two models. The GEE estimation procedure (Liang and Zeger, 1986) accounts for correlation between adoption decisions measured as a continuous variable while maintaining the theoretical integrity of a multinomial discrete-choice model typically used in technology adoption studies. The cost-function models estimate field-level, producer acreage allocation decisions for corn, first, as a function of normalized production input costs (prices) and structural technology class and installation time-period attributes (Model 1), and second, as a function of Model 1 variables plus socio-environmental variables reflecting the potential influence of a variety of field, farm, and environmental characteristics (Model 2). Evidence indicates significant characteristic differences exist between conservation program participants and non-participants across U.S. corn production, that non-program factors do heavily influence producer conservation practice decisions, and that farm-size matters. In addition, results suggest that program non-participants tend to adopt infield conservation structures much more intensively while program participants emphasize the adoption of perimeter-field conservation structures. Finally, these results seem to suggest that because perimeter-field structural practices can involve differential productivity/cost effects and off-site benefits, program incentives may need to play a greater role in encouraging their adoption than they do for infield structural practices.Crop Production/Industries, Environmental Economics and Policy,

Extreme coefficients in Geographically Weighted Regression and their effects on mapping

This study deals with the issue of extreme coefficients in geographically weighted regression (GWR) and their effects on mapping coefficients using three datasets with different spatial resolutions. We found that although GWR yields extreme coefficients regardless of the resolution of the dataset or types of kernel function, 1) the GWR tends to generate extreme coefficients for less spatially dense datasets, 2) coefficient maps based on polygon data representing aggregated areal units are more sensitive to extreme coefficients, and 3) coefficient maps using bandwidths generated by a fixed calibration procedure are more vulnerable to the extreme coefficients than adaptive calibration.extreme coefficient, fixed and adaptive calibrations, geographically weighted regression, Mapping, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Impacts of the Boom-Bust Cycle on the Effectiveness of Policies for Moderating the Consequences of Sprawl on Residential Development

urban sprawl, spatial discrete-choice model, Land Economics/Use,

Estimating Travel Cost Model: Spatial Approach

travel cost model, spatial analysis, Environmental Economics and Policy,

Concert recording 2022-04-26

[Track 1]. The four seasons. La primavera, op. 8, no. 1. L\u27Estate, Op. 8, No. 2 ; L\u27Autunno, Op. 8, No. 3 ; L\u27Inverno, Op. 8, No. 4 / Antonio Vivaldi -- [Track 2]. Serenade for string orchestra, op. 48. I. Pezzo in forma di sonatina ; III. Elegie ; IV. Finale / Pyotr Ilych Tchaikovsky

Concert recording 2022-04-26

[Track 1]. The four seasons. La primavera, op. 8, no. 1. L\u27Estate, Op. 8, No. 2 ; L\u27Autunno, Op. 8, No. 3 ; L\u27Inverno, Op. 8, No. 4 / Antonio Vivaldi -- [Track 2]. Serenade for string orchestra, op. 48. I. Pezzo in forma di sonatina ; III. Elegie ; IV. Finale / Pyotr Ilych Tchaikovsky