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The Journal of Mental Health Policy and... Sep 2015Unlike other disorders, much of the economic burden of mental disorders is not due to direct costs of care, but due to indirect costs such as loss of employment and the...
BACKGROUND
Unlike other disorders, much of the economic burden of mental disorders is not due to direct costs of care, but due to indirect costs such as loss of employment and the receipt of public assistance.
AIMS
The goal of this paper is to estimate how having a mental disorder impacts employment outcomes, receipt of public assistance and food assistance.
METHODS
We estimate the impact of having a mental disorder on employment and the receipt of public assistance using instrumental variable (IV) methods and a longitudinal dataset: National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Having a mental disorder is instrumented by whether the individual has any close family members with a history of alcohol, drug or behavioral disorders. We use bivariate probit models that control for individual socio-demographic characteristics and health status variables.
RESULTS
Results show that having any mental disorders is associated with a significant reduction in the probability of being employed by 0.09 (or 9 percentage points), and in the probability of being employed full-time by 0.10. For public assistance outcomes, having any mental disorders is associated with a significant increase in the probability of receiving public assistance and food assistance by 0.10 and 0.15, respectively. These estimated marginal effects using instrumental variable methods are greater than the standard probit model estimates for all outcomes, implying that the true impact of having a mental disorder is underestimated by standard models that do not employ an identifying strategy that controls for endogeneity.
DISCUSSION
The relatively large marginal effects on employment and public assistance suggest that effective diagnosis and treatment of individuals with mental disorders in the workforce can have a significant impact on productivity and public assistance programs.
Topics: Adult; Employment; Food Assistance; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Mental Disorders; Public Assistance; United States
PubMed: 26474049
DOI: No ID Found -
Evaluation Review Apr 2000The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) has enjoyed extraordinary bipartisan support stemming from the widespread belief that...
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) has enjoyed extraordinary bipartisan support stemming from the widespread belief that research studies have proven that WIC "works." Although some studies suggest real dietary and health improvements, the greatest benefits only apply to WIC's prenatal program (just a small part of the total program). Even here, weaknesses in the research render the findings highly uncertain. The three most significant weaknesses are (1) selection bias, (2) simultaneity bias, and (3) lack of generalizeability. The resulting uncertainty places WIC's possible impacts on infant mortality, prematurity, and birthweight on a range from zero to substantial. For infants, children, and postpartum and breastfeeding mothers, the only impacts seem to be small to modest effects on anemia and nutrient intake. This paper does not argue that WIC's weaknesses justify abandoning or even cutting the program. On the contrary, there should be a sustained effort to make the program more effective. This effort should start with a policy debate about WIC's role and impacts, coupled with a grant of greater flexibility to state and local WIC agencies to open the program to innovation and experimentation. To increase WIC's positive impacts, we propose a series of possible reforms, each to be thoroughly evaluated.
Topics: Child, Preschool; Counseling; Eligibility Determination; Female; Health Planning; Health Promotion; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Pregnancy; Program Evaluation; Public Assistance; United States
PubMed: 10848457
DOI: 10.1177/0193841X0002400201 -
Journal of Epidemiology and Community... Dec 1999
Topics: Health Status; Humans; Public Assistance; Public Policy; Social Class; Social Conditions; United Kingdom
PubMed: 10656081
DOI: 10.1136/jech.53.12.748 -
Perspectives in Public Health May 2011
Topics: Aging; Community Health Services; Health Services for the Aged; Humans; Independent Living; National Health Programs; Public Assistance; Quality of Life; United Kingdom
PubMed: 21692392
DOI: 10.1177/17579139111310030801 -
Work (Reading, Mass.) 2019Active labour market policies (ALMP) are used in advanced welfare states to support transitions to work for people who are unemployed or underemployed, including people... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Active labour market policies (ALMP) are used in advanced welfare states to support transitions to work for people who are unemployed or underemployed, including people with disabilities (PWD) in receipt of means-tested disability income support.
OBJECTIVE
This study explores the nature, strength, and limitations of ALMP across advanced welfare states (ALMP) for people with disabilities (PWD) in receipt of income benefits from social assistance programs.
METHODS
Following the eight steps of a scoping study, we identified 21 documents through a scan of eight databases and consultation with key informants. The majority of these documents are scholarly publications including seven literature reviews, two program evaluations, four social policy analyses, and two longitudinal studies.
RESULTS
We extracted key findings related to delivery of labour (re)entry interventions for people with disabilities. Six themes are identified that discuss these ALMP features: 1) welfare ideology and the role of citizenship; 2) conditionality of benefits; 3) work capacity and the need for an appropriate definition of disability; 4) the politics of employment outcomes for PWD; 5) the missing elements of a successful ALMP; and 6) moving beyond ALMP. The findings indicate that while various approaches are used in reintegrating PWD into mainstream employment, there are significant limitations that curtail the impact of these policies.
CONCLUSIONS
Regardless of welfare regime, no welfare state provides a policy mix that results in long-term employment success for PWD in receipt of means-tested income benefits.
Topics: Disabled Persons; Employment; Government Programs; Health Policy; Humans; Public Assistance
PubMed: 31524192
DOI: 10.3233/WOR-192989 -
The Proceedings of the Nutrition Society May 2000One in three children in Britain lives in poverty (households whose income was less than 50% average earnings). Low income is associated with poor nutrition at all... (Review)
Review
One in three children in Britain lives in poverty (households whose income was less than 50% average earnings). Low income is associated with poor nutrition at all stages of life, from lower rates of breast-feeding to higher intakes of saturated fatty acids and lower intakes of antioxidant nutrients. Moreover, there is increasing evidence that poor nutrition in childhood is associated with both short-term and long-term adverse consequences such as poorer immune status, higher caries rates and poorer cognitive function and learning ability. These problems arise primarily because parents do not have enough money to spend on food, not because money is being spent unwisely. Policy options to improve the dietary health of poor children include: giving more money to the parents by increasing Income Support (social security) payments, providing food stamps or vouchers, and using food budget standards to inform the levels of income needed to purchase an adequate diet; feeding children directly at school (not only at lunchtime but also at breakfast or homework clubs), by providing free fruit at school, and by increasing entitlement to free food amongst children living in households with low incomes; improving access to a healthy and affordable diet by first identifying 'food deserts' and then considering with retailers and local planners how best to provide food in an economical and sustainable way. The value of using food budget standards is illustrated with data relating expenditure on food to growth in children from 'at-risk' families (on low income, overcrowded, headed by a lone parent or with four or more children under 16 years of age) living in a poor area in London. Lower levels of expenditure are strongly associated with poorer growth and health, independent of factors such as birth weight, mother's height, or risk score. The present paper provides evidence that supports the need to review Government legislation in light of nutrition-related inequalities in the health of children.
Topics: Budgets; Child; Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Child, Preschool; England; Female; Food; Humans; Infant; Male; Nutrition Policy; Poverty; Public Assistance; Socioeconomic Factors
PubMed: 10946800
DOI: 10.1017/s0029665100000343 -
Annals of Dentistry 1984
Topics: Aid to Families with Dependent Children; Dental Health Services; Financing, Government; Medicaid; Public Assistance; Social Security; United States; Workers' Compensation
PubMed: 6242463
DOI: No ID Found -
Research and Statistics Note - Social... Aug 1978
Topics: Adult; Child; Emergency Medical Services; Female; Foster Home Care; Humans; Male; Public Assistance; Unemployment; United States
PubMed: 10240696
DOI: No ID Found -
Dental Survey Nov 1975
Topics: Peer Review; Public Assistance
PubMed: 1073775
DOI: No ID Found -
Journal of the Society of Pediatric... 1996
Topics: Child; Child Welfare; Female; Humans; Patient Advocacy; Pediatric Nursing; Poverty; Public Assistance; Single Parent; United States
PubMed: 8987017
DOI: No ID Found