Author: Jessica Roberts Martin

Bernstein”Private employment provides less health insurance than believed,” says Merton C. Bernstein, a founding board member of the National Academy of Social Insurance and the Coles Professor of Law Emeritus at Washington University in St. Louis. Bernstein is available to discuss health insurance in the U.S.

C.J. Larkin, J.D., administrative director of the School of Law’s Alternate Dispute Resolution Program and senior lecturer in law, is serving as a Fulbright senior specialist at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. During her summer appointment, she is focusing on various aspects of alternative dispute resolution. The law school has an ongoing partnership with Utrecht […]

“With President Obama now approaching six months in office, some have suggested that we have gone beyond race as a major dividing line in society. Yet nothing could be further from the truth,” says Mark R. Rank, Ph.D., professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis. “One of the fundamental fault lines in American society continues to be the ongoing racial disparities in economic well-being.” Using 30 years of data, Rank examined three key factors in attaining economic well-being: owning a home and building equity; attaining affluence and avoiding poverty; and possessing enough assets to survive economic turmoil, or a “rainy day fund.” “The results indicate that within each area, the economic racial divide across the American life course is immense,” Rank says.

The United States has attempted to pass major health reform legislation eight times in the last century, starting in the mid 1910s up through 1993-94 with the failed Clinton health reform effort. “Only once in that period was any legislation passed — in 1964-65 when Medicare and Medicaid were passed,” says Timothy McBride, Ph.D., associate dean of public health at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis. “Yet, for many reasons, I feel that it is much more likely that legislation will pass this year.” At this point, McBride believes that President Obama has the political support necessary to make health reform happen, and he has made it his top domestic priority. McBride has been active in testifying before Congress and consulting with important policy constituencies on Medicare, insurance and health policy issues. He is a member of the Rural Policy Research Institute Health Panel that provides expert advice on rural health issues to the U.S. Congress and other policymakers.

B. Don Taylor III, J.D., has been named executive director of the Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute and Cash Nickerson Fellow at the School of Law.

The New America Foundation and Center for Social Development at Washington University announced May 21 a new College Savings Initiative to examine and improve 529 college savings plans so more people have the opportunity to attend and complete college.

The New America Foundation and Center for Social Development (CSD) at Washington University in St. Louis announce a new College Savings Initiative to examine and improve 529 college savings plans so more people have the opportunity to attend and complete college. “Saving money is not easy, but research shows many people can save when they have incentives and a way to do so. More low-income families may save with well-designed 529s and incentives,” said Margaret Clancy, Policy Director at CSD. “We will study 529 innovations to see which ones are effective. This will inform 529 policy so that it can benefit families of all income levels.”

The new Master of Public Health program at Washington University’s George Warren Brown School of Social Work is offering a full-tuition, merit-based scholarship to registered nurses who want to advance their interest in public health, specifically community health and wellness. The scholarship is available to prospective students who have at least a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.

The new Master of Public Health program at Washington University’s George Warren Brown School of Social Work is offering a full-tuition, merit-based scholarship to students who improve the health of communities and populations locally, nationally, and internationally. Undergraduate pre-medicine majors, medical students, and physicians are encouraged to apply.

The new Master of Public Health program at Washington University’s George Warren Brown School of Social Work is offering a new, full-tuition, merit-based scholarship to support students interested in using their skills and interests in communications, journalism, marketing, public policy, psychology, sociology, and related fields to improve the health of communities and populations locally, nationally and internationally.