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THIS ISSUE AVAILABLE ONLINE WITH EXPANDED INFORMATION AND PHOTOS
AT:
www.hhs.gov/news/newsletter/weekly
IN THIS ISSUE:
1) Welfare caseloads continue downward trend
2) HHS awards $26.7 million to improve health care in rural America
3) Secretary Thompson to address the Grocery Manufacturers of America
4) HHS announces creation of Medical Reserve Corps units
5) NIH study finds improved heart failure survival
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Welfare caseloads continue downward trend
HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson has announced that the number of people receiving assistance under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program declined between December 2001 and June 2002.
During that time, the number of recipients of TANF benefits declined by 267,000 to roughly 5 million people - a 5.1 percent decline. The number of families receiving TANF assistance dropped by more than 75,000 to about 2 million - a 3.6 percent decline, according to the statistics from HHS' Administration for Children and Families (ACF).
"This latest report simply reaffirms that welfare reform in America is working. Despite some tough economic times, our reformed welfare system continues to move more people off of public support and into the workforce. But we can't be satisfied with our current successes. We must improve upon our existing program so that it completes the transition of individuals from dependence upon a welfare check to the independence of a paycheck," Secretary Thompson said.
Since the welfare reform law creating the TANF program was enacted on August 22, 1996, the number of welfare recipients has declined by 59 percent. There are more than 7 million fewer people receiving welfare since the passage of the law.
President Bush's proposal to reauthorize TANF takes the next step in welfare reform by strengthening work requirements, providing the assistance families need to climb the career ladder and granting states more flexibility to run successful programs. Information on the administration's proposal is available on the Internet at www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/02/20020226.html.
"To accomplish our goals, Congress must act on the President's proposal - this year. The House has passed reauthorization legislation based on President Bush's bold and visionary proposal. Now, the Senate must do the same, as soon as possible," Secretary Thompson said.
The full report is available at www.acf.dhhs.gov/news/stats/newstat2.shtml.
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HHS awards $26.7 million to improve health care in rural America
HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson has announced $26.7 million in grants designed to improve health care in small rural hospitals and speed help to heart attack victims in rural America.
"Rural Americans deserve quality health care services, and these grants will help to provide life-enhancing and life-saving services for residents in rural communities. This is one step in a broader effort to improve the services available in rural areas, where access to health care is often limited," Secretary Thompson said.
More than $14.8 million of the total comes from a program intended to help 1,450 small rural hospitals in 46 states and Puerto Rico improve the services they provide. Each hospital participating in the Small Rural Hospital Improvement Grant program will receive approximately $10,000, which will be spent to improve quality and patient safety by making greater investments in computers, software and technical assistance. Rural hospitals are defined as small if they have 49 or fewer beds.
The remaining $11.9 million in grants, part of the Rural Access to Emergency Devices Grant program, will go to states to buy automatic external defibrillators and train emergency personnel in rural areas in their proper use. Automatic defibrillators are lightweight, portable devices, which provide an electrical shock capable of restoring the normal heart rhythm of cardiac arrest victims, greatly improving chances of survival until they reach a hospital.
Both grant programs are part of the Secretary's Initiative on Rural
Communities (ruralhealth.hrsa.gov/initiative.htm), which aims to improve
access to health care and social services for the 65 million Americans who live
in rural areas. The grants are administered by the Office of Rural Health Policy
(www.ruralhealth.hrsa.gov) in HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration
(HRSA). The list of grant recipients is available at newsroom.hrsa.gov/releases/2002releases/rural.htm.
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Secretary Thompson to address the Grocery Manufacturers of America
HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson will address the Grocery Manufacturers of America (GMA) in Washington, DC on Tuesday, Nov. 5 to urge them to join with the Bush Administration's efforts to improve the health of Americans.
"We need the help of America's food producers to encourage better eating choices and lifestyle practices by ordinary men, women and children. By bringing more healthful choices to the marketplace they will present Americans with more and better options for healthy living," Secretary Thompson said.
In addition, the Secretary will discuss food security issues and bioterrorism preparation. He will detail Administration action on food allergens, bioengineered foods, cross-contamination issues and Dr. Mark McClellan's recent appointment to head the FDA.
"All Americans deserve to know that their government is doing all it can to ensure that the food we eat and the beverages we drink are safe and healthy. GMA's commitment to that same goal has been a source of encouragement and confidence to those of us who have to implement it in public policy," Secretary Thompson said.
GMA is the world's largest association of food, beverage and consumer product
companies. With U.S. sales of more than $460 billion, GMA members employ more
than 2.5 million workers in all 50 states.
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HHS announces creation of Medical Reserve Corps units
Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson announced 42 grants totaling $2 million to community-based organizations to begin building local Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) units that will help local communities prepare and respond in the event of a public health emergency.
The local MRC units are comprised of local citizens, volunteers who are trained to respond to health crises. The volunteers' responsibilities will include emergency response, logistical planning, records keeping, assisting in public health and awareness campaigns, and public communications.
"The Medical Reserve Corps gives Americans an opportunity to help out in their community. All of us have talents and skills and there is no better place to use those talents then in service to the local community," Secretary Thompson said. "These awards will help empower our communities to plan and establish local citizen-centered volunteer Medical Reserve Corps units which will include not only physicians and nurses but also a broad range of skills in health and other fields."
Each local MRC unit will be established, activated, and operated by the local community, in concert with established emergency response and public health systems. They will be an important additional resource to address health problems that a local community might incur because of a natural disaster or other catastrophic event. In addition, volunteers may help with local health campaigns - such as immunizations - and health education and awareness in the community throughout the year.
President Bush, in his State of the Union address in January 2001, announced that he was launching the USA Freedom Corps to foster an American culture of citizenship, service, and responsibility. He formed the Citizen Corps initiative, of which the MRC is a part, to give individuals the opportunity to serve their neighbors by making our communities safe from threats of all kinds.
The Medical Reserve Corps is led by the Office of the Surgeon General in HHS.
For more information including, the MRC guidance document "Medical Reserve
Corps - A Guide for Local Leaders," information on training resources,
and the monthly MRC newsletter please log onto www.medicalreservecorps.gov.
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NIH study finds improved heart failure survival
Survival after a heart failure diagnosis has greatly improved over the past 50 years, according to a study from HHS's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health. The study, found that the risk of dying after being diagnosed with heart failure had dropped by about a third in men and women during that period.
The study also found that new cases of heart failure had dropped by about a third for women during the same period. However, the number of new cases for men remained unchanged.
"These findings offer good news about a highly lethal disease," said NHLBI Director Dr. Claude Lenfant. "However, heart failure still affects far too many Americans and more than half of those who develop it die within 5 years of diagnosis.
"Prevention remains the best defense against heart failure. Americans can greatly reduce their chances of developing it by taking steps to prevent or control high blood pressure, heart disease, and other conditions that can lead to heart failure."
Heart failure occurs when the heart loses its ability to pump enough blood through the body. It often develops slowly, over many years.
About 4.8 million Americans have heart failure, with about 550,000 new cases being diagnosed each year. Heart failure contributes to about 287,000 deaths a year.
Other information found included:
-- In 1950-69, 70 percent of men died within 5 years of being diagnosed with heart failure; in 1990-99, that rate dropped to 59 percent.
-- In 1950-69, 57 percent of women died within 5 years of heart failure diagnosis; in 1990-99, that rate dropped to 45 percent.
-- Deaths from heart failure decreased on average by 12 percent per decade for women and men.
Advances in medical science was credited for saving lives and reducing the death rate. Treatments for heart attacks and high blood pressure have improved greatly over the past 50 years, but the risks still continue.
"Heart attack treatment and survival have improved since 1950," Dr. Lenfant concluded. "But, many of those who now survive have a damaged heart, which makes them vulnerable to heart failure. A consequence of advances in the treatment of heart attack is a growing group of patients at risk for the occurrence of heart failure."
NHLBI news releases and information on heart failure and other heart-related
topics are available online at <www.nhlbi.nih.gov>.
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