Cash-Strapped States Misuse Funds Targeted To End Poverty
The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, known as TANF, has been used by many states to help pay for programs that have little to do with moving poor people into the workforce, Stateline reports. Other outlets look at the president's power to change the federal health law, technology problems for seniors and COVID-19's effect on detention centers and prisons.
Stateline:
States Raid Fund Meant For Needy Families To Pay For Other Programs
Nearly 25 years ago, President Bill Clinton vowed to “end welfare as we know it,” and Congress bought in, passing landmark legislation designed to help millions of low-income Americans find work and get off the rolls for good. In the early years, the new Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, known as TANF, which states also must fund, did just that. But over time, instead of focusing on helping low-income people get jobs, TANF has devolved into a kind of candy store that many states are raiding to plug budget holes and pay for programs that have little to do with moving poor people into the workforce, a Stateline investigation has found. (Bergal, 7/24)
Kaiser Health News and PolitiFact:
With DACA Ruling, Did Supreme Court Grant Trump New Powers To Reshape Health Care?
President Donald Trump came into office vowing to repeal and replace Obamacare. While he successfully neutralized the health care law’s requirement that everyone carry insurance, the law remains in effect. When Fox News host Chris Wallace noted that Trump has yet to put forward a replacement plan, Trump told him to stay tuned. “We’re signing a health care plan within two weeks, a full and complete health care plan that the Supreme Court decision on DACA gave me the right to do,” Trump said July 19 on “Fox News Sunday.” (Greenberg, 7/24)
Kaiser Health News:
Technology Divide Between Senior ‘Haves’ And ‘Have-Nots’ Roils Pandemic Response
Family gatherings on Zoom and FaceTime. Online orders from grocery stores and pharmacies. Telehealth appointments with physicians. These have been lifesavers for many older adults staying at home during the coronavirus pandemic. But an unprecedented shift to virtual interactions has a downside: Large numbers of seniors are unable to participate. (Graham, 7/24)
The Washington Post:
Meatpacking Workers File Lawsuit Against OSHA, Accusing Agency Of Failing To Keep Them Safe
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is failing to do its job properly, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday by three meatpacking workers, who say the agency’s inaction has left them in danger. The lawsuit accuses OSHA of leaving the workers in imminent danger due to what they say are hazardous working conditions at the factory where they work, run by Maid-Rite Specialty Foods in Pennsylvania, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. (Rosenberg, 7/23)
In other news —
AP:
North Dakota Governor Blasts Party's Anti-LGBTQ Resolution
North Dakota’s Republican governor on Thursday blasted an anti-LGBTQ resolution that was passed by hundreds of his party’s delegates, calling it insulting and divisive. The resolution — one of dozens of party policy statements in a passed by this spring by mail-in ballot — states that many “LGBT practices are unhealthy and dangerous, sometimes endangering or shortening life and sometimes infecting society at large.” Gov. Doug Burgum issued a statement Thursday denouncing the resolution. (MacPherson, 7/23)
NBC News:
Despite Judge's Order, Migrant Children Remain Detained Amid COVID Outbreak
Nearly a month after a federal judge ruled the Trump administration must release migrant children "with all deliberate speed" from Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers because of COVID-19, 346 parents and children are detained in facilities with outbreaks and court filings show releases remain rare. When U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee ordered the release of children detained with their parents in late June, she was explicit in her reasoning. The ICE facilities, she said, were "‘on fire’ and there is no more time for half measures." (Soboroff, 7/23)
Sacramento Bee:
Judge Orders CA Prisons To Make Coronavirus Isolation Space
Amid concerns over the spread of the coronavirus, a federal judge has now ordered the state to set aside space for isolation and quarantine in its prisons. The order is the latest result of a long string of court motions filed by prison reform advocates in recent months that have criticized the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Under the ruling, signed by U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Judge Jon Tigar on Wednesday, the state must come up with a plan to vacate at least 100 beds in each prison across California in the next month. (Kristoffersen, 7/23)
Detroit Free Press:
Michigan Prison System To Launch Video Calls During COVID-19
After only communicating with loved ones through emails, phone calls and letters during the coronavirus pandemic, people incarcerated at some Michigan prisons will have the option for video visitation as the state institutes a pilot program slated to get underway in about three months. The Department of Corrections on Thursday said it is launching video calls at seven of its 29 prisons. The department halted in-person visits in prisons March 13 because of COVID-19. (Jackson, 7/23)
