Ohio joining push to insure kids, By Catherine Candisky, March 12, 2010, Columbus Dispatch: “Two of three uninsured kids in Ohio - 77,000 youngsters - don’t have to go without health care. Their modest family incomes qualify them for tax-funded coverage, but they aren’t enrolled. Ohio will become the first state to join a challenge by the Obama administration to eliminate the ranks of so-called uninsured eligibles within five years, Gov. Ted Strickland announced yesterday. To meet that goal, Ohio will adopt three initiatives to make it easier for families to enroll in the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and keep them covered longer…”

How states rank: Federal spending driven by census data, By Ron Scherer, March 9, 2010, Christian Science Monitor: “In the weeks ahead, tens of millions of Americans will be asked to provide information for the US census. For the states and the District of Columbia, the Census Bureau says, more than $400 billion in federal spending is at stake. (For more on the 2010 Census, click here. So: Which states will benefit the most from an accurate census? On a per capita basis, the answer is rural areas and places with a large poor population, according to an analysis released Tuesday by the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program. The following conclusion may be surprising to some: Politics does not appear to have played a large role in which states get more money. For example, the state of Nevada - which has high-ranking Democrat Harry Reid in the Senate - came in last in terms of per capita spending of federal dollars as related to census numbers…”

• A matter of fairness, Editorial, March 12, 2010, Baltimore Sun: “The last time Maryland updated its guidelines for calculating child support, Ronald Reagan was in the White House, ‘The Cosby Show’ was at the top of the ratings, and Corey Haim was at the pinnacle of his film career. The year was 1988, and under pressure from the federal government, Maryland developed a matrix of how much parents were expected to spend for their children’s food, clothing, housing and so on, based on their combined income level. The idea was that children should not have to suffer a lower standard of living just because their parents were divorced or separated, and that the parents should bear a responsibility for the costs proportionate to their income. The states were supposed to update their guidelines every four years based on changes in costs and spending patterns, but Maryland never did…”
• Md. is behind the times and the cost of living on child support, Editorial, March 12, 2010, Washington Post: “The last time Maryland calculated what parents should reasonably pay in child support was 1988. That’s when the price of a stamp was 22 cents, the average cost of a new home was $138,300 and a gallon of gas went for $1.08. It is time Maryland stop shortchanging children and approve a long-needed update of the guidelines governing child support…”

Number of minimum-wage earners in Texas surges, By Scott Nishimura, March 11, 2010, Fort Worth Star-Telegram: “The number of Texans earning minimum wage surged in 2009, after the wage increased to $7.25 from $6.55, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Thursday. Last year, 474,000 Texans earned minimum wage or below, up 200,000 over the year, the bureau said. Those workers accounted for 8.5 percent of hourly wage earners in Texas…”

Weeks after quake, Haiti’s elderly hobble through chaos, By William Booth, March 12, 2010, Washington Post: “It was always hard to be old in Haiti, but after the earthquake, to be old and poor feels like a curse, say those who are both. ‘We struggle to maintain a little dignity, but look at us,’ said Lauranise Gedeon, who sat, embarrassed, in soiled sheets in the ruins of a municipal nursing home here in the capital. Residents were bathed outdoors with a bucket, trying to cover their nakedness. They spent the long, hot afternoons in hospital beds lined up side by side, six to a tent, fanning themselves with pieces of cardboard. They begged for water to drink. ‘No water today. We are waiting. We are waiting for medicines, for the doctors, for God to help us,’ said nurse Yolette François. ‘I am serious. These old people have a lot of troubles.’ Her patients, about 80 men and women, were scooping rice and beans from dented metal bowls. Asked what they need most, one resident said, ‘Something for the flies.’ Another complained that her spoon had been stolen and held up her fingers, sticky with food. ‘Look!…’”