Policy & Practice articles from March 2005

Policy & Practice archives from March 2005

Reflections on 75 years.
March 1, 2005... 75 Years of Excellence in Public Human Services NATIONAL SPRING CONFERENCE March 20-23, 2005 * Washington, DC 1930-2005 As APHSA celebrates 75 years of excellence in public human services, its membership now represents 10...

The foundation of our success.(director's memo)
March 1, 2005... This issue of Policy & Practice marks the start of festivities for the 75th anniversary of the American Public Human Services Association (APHSA). It is a glorious time to be a part of this association that has worked diligently for 75 years to...

Inside story.
March 1, 2005... As we at the American Public Human Services Association celebrate our 75th anniversary, Policy & Practice is also celebrating a milestone in March 2005. While members of APHSA gather in Washington to commemorate the huge progress that we have...

Social Enterprise Management: transforming government service delivery.
March 1, 2005... Citizen Service, long an oxymoron, is becoming an attainable goal. From New York to Utah and from Louisiana to British Columbia, forward-looking state and provincial governments are embracing a new Social Enterprise Management (SEM) business...

Administration releases FY 2006 budget proposal.(first things first)
March 1, 2005... On February 7, the administration released its fiscal year 2006 budget proposal. The budget would reduce federal mandatory spending by $137 billion over 10 years. One of the major areas targeted for savings is the Medicaid program, which would...

Senate confirms Leavitt as HHS secretary, Johanns assumes USDA post.(first things first)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... On January 26, the Senate confirmed the nomination of Michael Leavitt as the new secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The day before, the Senate Finance Committee had cleared his nomination by voice vote....

CMS reports slowing of U.S. health care spending.(first things first)(Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)
March 1, 2005... According to a report released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Office of the Actuary, the pace of health spending growth slowed in 2003, marking the first deceleration in national health spending growth in seven years....

Rural Assistance Center offers one-stop information service.(first things first)
March 1, 2005... Rural health and human services now have a one-stop information resource to access available programs, funding, and research that can help them improve the quality of their services to rural residents. The Rural Assistance Center (RAC) was...

Senate leaders announce priorities for 109th Congress.(first things first)
March 1, 2005... On January 24, Senator Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) and members of the Senate Republican leadership announced their legislative priorities for the 109th Congress. The package of bills, filed as S. 1 through S. 10, includes reforms to...

State fiscal report highlights Medicaid.(first things first)
March 1, 2005... The National Governors Association and the National Association of State Budget Officers have released a report highlighting the effect of health spending on state fiscal situations. The report, The Fiscal Survey of States, explains that for...

GAO lists insurance and benefit programs as high-risk areas.(first things first)
March 1, 2005... On January 25, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released an updated version of the High-Risk Series, a periodic report highlighting problem areas that GAO believes are impeding effective government and costing the government billions...

Phil Basso.(staff spotlight)
March 1, 2005... Name... Phil Basso Time at APHSA... Since July 2003 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Title... Program director, Leadership and Practice Development Place of Birth... Brockport, N.Y. A Typical Day Starts With...

Happy Birthday Medicaid.
March 1, 2005... As APHSA celebrates its 75th year in leadership in public health and human service policy and programs, the Medicaid program--states' largest single and most comprehensive program--is approaching its 40th anniversary. And no social service or...

The user is the key.
March 1, 2005... Successful technology solutions have more to do with users than the technology itself. Information Technology (IT) projects have no shortage in viable technology alternatives for achieving an organization's goals. With so many viable technology...

Leveraging data to enhance management outcome.
March 1, 2005... Wendy Cole can really concentrate on what children tell her these days because of technology used by child welfare workers in Utah Department of Human Services--she doesn't have to spend a lot of time writing in long hand. [ILLUSTRATION...

APHSA Policy Summit: nearly 100 local and affiliate officials attended the conference in December 2004 in Dallas to discuss legislative policies.
March 1, 2005... Mary Stalnaker, director of family support services at the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, confers with colleagues Sharon Neuwald and Howard Hendrick, Oklahoma department director, at the recent APHSA Policy Summit in Dallas. Nearly 100...

Offshoring human services.
March 1, 2005... Outsourcing information technology (IT) products and services overseas, or "offshoring," has been happening for decades, but the recent increase in sending IT work to India, China, and other countries has been seen by some as causing many...

Agencies look to accreditation for accountability and change.(services of Council on Accreditation)
March 1, 2005... In the five years since the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services made headlines by attaining national accreditation, three other statewide public systems--Kentucky in 2002, Louisiana in 2003, and Arkansas in 2004--have followed...

Intercountry adoption: who are the good guys?(legal notes)
March 1, 2005... The January 5, 2005, CNN headline read, "Trafficking a threat to tsunami orphans." Within days after the tsunami hit, Indonesia had begun putting into place policies that prohibited any child under age 16 from leaving the country. Why? The...

A shift in practice--Adams County Children and Youth Services.(making things happen)
March 1, 2005... We have entered an exciting and defining time in Child Welfare. Pennsylvania's Child and Family Services Review, the subsequent Program Improvement Plan, and Best Practice Standards developed a few years ago, are affecting everything we do and...

Utah Department of Human Services.(newsmakers)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Robin Arnold-Williams has resigned as director of the Utah Department of Human Services. Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. named Lisa-Michele Church the new director. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Sinclair Oil Corporation.(newsmakers)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Most of Church's legal career has been with Sinclair Oil Corporation, where she served as vice president and general counsel. At Sinclair, she was influential in initiatives such as creating and administering an in-house health benefits...

Utah Department of Workforce Services.(newsmakers)(Tani Pack Downing)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Huntsman also named Tani Pack Downing as executive director for the Utah Department of Workforce Services after Raylene Ireland resigned.

Center for Health Care Strategies.(hires and retirement)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... In Indiana, Melanie Bella stepped down as the Medicaid director to become vice president of policy at the Center for Health Care Strategies. Gov. Mitch Daniels made some organizational changes in the Family and Social Services Administration,...

The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources.(newsmakers)(Martha Walker)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin appointed Martha Walker as the new secretary of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, replacing Paul Nusbaum. Walker served in the West virginia House of Delegates in 1990 and the state...

The Florida Department of Children and Families.(appointment)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... In Florida, Lucy Hadi has been named secretary of the Florida Department of Children and Families, where she has served as interim secretary of the agency since September.

The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services.(newsmakers)(Robert Wynia)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Robert Wynia is the new director of the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services following the resignation of Gail Gray.

Delaware.(newsmakers)(Phil Soule retires)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Phil Soule, Medicaid director for Delaware, has retired. Harry Hill has filled the position.

Achieving success through community contracting.(the field works)(services of Adams County (Colorado) Social Services Department )(Assistance for Needy Families)
March 1, 2005... When welfare reform arrived with its emphasis on personal responsibility in 1996, we set out at the Adams County (Colorado) Social Services Department (ACSSD) to create an innovative and effective Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)...

Chatting with reporters.(words on words)
March 1, 2005... As an agency official, part of your job is to sell your agency--to promote your agency's image and work, to impress legislators who control your organization's purse strings, and to make your agency the authoritative source for reporters. This...

Grow Your Own Leaders: How to Identify, Develop and Retain Leadership Talent.(Book Review)
March 1, 2005... Grow Your Own Leaders: How to Identify, Develop and Retain Leadership Talent By William Byham, Audrey Smith, and Matthew Paese. Hardcover/416 Pages/Financial Times Prentice Hall, first edition. 2002/013009398X List Price $29.00 ...

Effective Succession Planning: Ensuring Leadership Continuity and Building Talent From Within.(Book Review)
March 1, 2005... Effective Succession Planning: Ensuring Leadership Continuity and Building Talent From Within By William J. Rothwell. Hardcover/338 Pages/American Management Association; second edition. 2000/0814470807. List Price $65.00 If you are...

Our do'ers profile.
March 1, 2005... In Our Do'ers Profile, we highlight some of the hardworking and talented individuals in public human services. This issue features Carolyn Colvin of the Montgomery County (Md.) Department of Health and Human Services. [ILLUSTRATION...