Poverty Dispatch - December 15, 2008

IRP compiles and distributes Poverty Dispatches, links to Web-based news items dealing with poverty, welfare reform, and related topics twice a week. Each Dispatch lists links to current news in popular print media. Persons wishing to receive Poverty Dispatches by e-mail should send a request to irppubs@ssc.wisc.edu.

Today's Topics in the News:

• Unemployment and Joblessness
• States and Medicaid Funding
• Homelessness and Housing
• Food Assistance Programs and Increasing Need
• Kids Count Report - Texas
• Children and Families Post-Hurricane Katrina
• Home Foreclosures and Renters
• State and Local Budget Cuts
• The Uninsured and Emergency Room Use
• Access to Bank Accounts - California
• Access to Higher Education

Today's Articles:

Note: All links are external; some links may require a free registration at the host site (e.g., New York Times, Chicago Tribune).
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Unemployment and Joblessness

States' funds for jobless are drying up. Read Article
By Jennifer Steinhauer, New York Times. December 14, 2008.
 

Assistance slow to reach recently unemployed. (INDIANA) Read Article
By Ivy Farguheson, Muncie Star Press. December 15, 2008.
 

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States and Medicaid Funding

Plan would boost Medicaid. (OKLAHOMA) Read Article
By Kim Archer, Tulsa World. December 13, 2008.
 

Plan avoids reductions in Medicaid funding. (KENTUCKY) Read Article
By Deborah Yetter, Louisville Courier-Journal. December 12, 2008.
 

State recovers $551M in Medicaid overbilling. (NEW YORK) Read Article
By Heather Senison, Ithaca Journal. December 13, 2008.
 

Audit questions state Medicaid program costs, notes $12 million overrun for delay in software. (WISCONSIN) Read Article
By Ryan J. Foley (Associated Press), Appleton Post-Crescent. December 12, 2008.
 

Vote set on plan for care of poor. (LOUISIANA) Read Article
By Mark Ballard, Baton Rouge Advocate. December 14, 2008.
 

Many suffer during wait for Medicaid coverage. (OHIO) Read Article
By Ann Fisher, Columbs Dispatch. December 12, 2008.
 

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Homelessness and Housing

Survey finds fewer homeless with jobs. Read Article
By John Iwasaki, Seattle Post-Intelligencer. December 12, 2008.
 

Homelessness rising as economy slides. Read Article
By Jason Szep, Reuters. December 13, 2008.
 

Miami shows off its help for the homeless. Read Article
By Michael R. Vasquez, Miami Herald. December 13, 2008.
 

Halfway to homeless. (CHATTANOOGA, TN) Read Article
By Elizabeth Ryan, Chattanooga Times Free Press. December 14, 2008.
 

No extended stay for mobile students. (CHATTANOOGA, TN) Read Article
By Elizabeth Ryan, Chattanooga Times Free Press. December 15, 2008.
 

Changing face of homelessness. Read Article
By Michael Drost, Washington Times. December 14, 2008.
 

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Food Assistance Programs and Increasing Need

Food-stamp use up. (ERIE, PA) Read Article
By George Miller, Erie Times-News. December 14, 2008.
 

Food needs grow. (IOWA) Read Article
By Charlotte Eby, Mason City Globe Gazette. December 12, 2008.
 

Number of Georgia families using food stamps skyrockets. (GEORGIA) Read Article
By Craig Schneider, Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 11, 2008.
 

Public-assistance demands rise as economy drops. (MASSACHUSETTS) Read Article
By Bill Kirk, North Andover Eagle-Tribune. December 15, 2008.
 

National food stamp surge amplified in West Virginia. (WEST VIRGINIA) Read Article
By Tom Breen (Associated Press), Times West Virginian. December 12, 2008.
 

Food banks forced to partner with farms, fishermen. Read Article
By Carrie Antlfinger (Associated Press), USA Today. December 14, 2008.
 

Report highlights needs of hungry in Philadelphia. (PHILADELPHIA, PA) Read Article
By Alfred Lubrano, Philadelphia Inquirer. December 13, 2008.
 

A greater hunger. (COLORADO) Read Article
By Laura Snider, Boulder Daily Camera. December 14, 2008.
 

Kids hungry for breakfast. (MISSISSIPPI) Read Article
By Marquita Brown, Clarion Ledger. December 15, 2008.
 

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Kids Count Report - Texas

Report: Poor children continue to underperform in Tarrant, Texas. (TEXAS) Read Article
By Matt Frazier, Fort Worth Star-Telegram. December 15, 2008.
 

Study links poverty, low TAKS scores. (TEXAS) Read Article
By Kelline Linton, Abilene Reporter-News. December 12, 2008.
 

Closing educational gaps. (TEXAS) Read Article
San Marcos Daily Record. December 11, 2008.
 

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Children and Families Post-Hurricane Katrina

Many children lack stability long after storm. Read Article
By Shaila Dewan, New York Times. December 4, 2008.
 

Federal audit raises serious questions about Housing Authority of New Orleans. Read Article
By Katy Reckdahl, New Orleans Times-Picayune. December 15, 2008.
 

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Home Foreclosures and Renters

Fannie Mae lets renters stay despite foreclosures. Read Article
By Charles Duhigg, New York Times. December 14, 2008.
 

Fannie to let renters remain in foreclosures. Read Article
By Zachary A. Goldfarb, Washington Post. December 15, 2008.
 

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State and Local Budget Cuts

State spending to drop in 2009. Read Article
By Pamela M. Prah, Stateline.org. December 15, 2008.
 

Plenty of pain to go around. (NEW YORK) Read Article
By James T. Madore, Newsday. December 15, 2008.
 

Paterson to propose raising basic welfare grant. (NEW YORK) Read Article
By James T. Madore and Michael Amon, Newsday. December 15, 2008.
 

Pain, gain in budget figures. (NEW YORK) Read Article
By Irene Jay Liu, Albany Times-Union. December 15, 2008.
 

Taxes and fees to rise $4 billion in New York budget. (NEW YORK) Read Article
By Danny Hakim and Jeremy W. Peters, New York Times. December 14, 2008.
 

Orange County expects $84-million budget gap next year, may cut more jobs. (ORANGE COUNTY, CA) Read Article
By Stuart Pfeifer, Los Angeles Times. December 12, 2008.
 

800 may lose jobs at O.C. Social Services Agency. (ORANGE COUNTY, CA) Read Article
By Norberto Santana Jr., Orange County Register. December 10, 2008.
 

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The Uninsured and Emergency Room Use

Uninsured put a strain on hospitals. Read Article
By Reed Abelson, New York Times. December 8, 2008.
 

Hospitals forced to pick up slack when uninsured patients cannot afford to pay. Read Article
By Pat Shellenbarger, Grand Rapids Press. December 14, 2008.
 

Hospitals feel financial pinch. Read Article
By Rob Varnon, Connecticut Post. December 13, 2008.
 

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Access to Bank Accounts - California

California helping poor and immigrants open and maintain bank accounts. (CALIFORNIA) Read Article
By Jennifer Steinhauer, New York Times. December 11, 2008.
 

No bank account? Time to change that. (Editorial) Read Article
Sacramento Bee. December 12, 2008.
 

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Access to Higher Education

Colleges give new aid to keep students afloat. Read Article
By Jo Napolitano and Tara Malone, Chicago Tribune. December 15, 2008.
 

Helping more students afford higher education. (Opinion) Read Article
By Stephen M. Curtis, Philadelphia Inquirer. December 12, 2008.
 

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Note: All links are external; some links may require a free registration at the host site (e.g., New York Times, Chicago Tribune).