Excerpt from The Political Carnival: (click for entire article)
I am so grateful to live in a state that isn’t completely bonkers. Emphasis on completely. Los Angeles excluded (Yes, I’m from L.A.).
Remind me to send Kamala Harris a thank you card.
Via the L.A. Times:
Calif. Atty. Gen. Kamala D. Harris’ office has called a proposed $25-billion settlement with the nation’s mortgage industry “inadequate.”
“We’ve reviewed the details of the latest settlement proposal from the banks, and we believe it is inadequate for California,” Shum Preston, a spokesman for Harris, said in a statement. “Our state has been clear about what any multistate settlement must contain: transparency, relief going to the most distressed homeowners and meaningful enforcement that ensures accountability. At this point, this deal does not suffice for California.” [...]
Excerpt from Marketwire: (click for entire article)
Kessler Foundation awarded a $250,000 Signature Employment Grant to Hudson Community Enterprises (HCE), headquartered in Jersey City, N.J., to advance employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities. This Signature Grant is part of the more than $2.7 million in grants awarded by the Foundation in 2011; since 2005, the Foundation has distributed more than $20 million in funding.
HCE is a three-time recipient of a Signature Grant. The Foundation's funding supported the growth of HCE's successful full service document management operation. Now a $5-million company, HCE began with a small shredding business -- Metro Shredding -- and then added Metro Scanning, and Metro Digital Document Solutions.
Today, this social enterprise provides more than 90 jobs with benefits for people with disabilities, and occupies three locations totaling 10,000 sq feet. Individuals undergo a rigorous assessment and nine-week training program to help them succeed as document specialists.
Excerpt from Stop Medicare Fraud: (click for entire article)
The owner and an employee of a Miami health care agency pleaded guilty for their participation in a $22 million home health Medicare fraud scheme, the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced today.
Marietha Morales, 38, pleaded guilty on Jan. 24, 2012, before U.S. District Judge Seitz to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and Eduardo Saborit-Dominguez, 48, pleaded guilty today before Judge Seitz to one count of conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute. Sentencing for both defendants is scheduled for May 23, 2012. The charge of conspiracy to commit health care fraud carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years.
According to the court documents, Morales was the president and Saborit-Dominguez was an employee of Prime Home Health Services Inc., a Florida home health agency that purported to provide home health care and physical therapy services to eligible Medicare beneficiaries.
Excerpt from Shore News Today: (click for entire article)
Eighth-grade students at the Emma C. Attales Middle School will be spending February seeking to bolster their understanding of people with developmental disabilities.
The R-word Developmental Disabilities Project was kicked off Thursday, Jan. 26 when representatives of the Arc of Atlantic County spent three hours with students here.
“The project promotes tolerance and acceptance through experience,” teacher Barbara Horner said. “Students will work with members of the state and county advocacy group for the Arc to eradicate the use of the R-word in everyday speech.”
Excerpt from the United States Department of Justice: (click for entire article)
The Justice Department today announced that it has entered into a comprehensive settlement agreement that will transform the Commonwealth of Virginia’s system for serving people with developmental disabilities, including intellectual disabilities, and will resolve violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Under the ADA and the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Olmstead v. L.C., individuals with disabilities have the right to receive services in the most integrated settings appropriate to their needs. The ADA and Olmstead require states to provide people with disabilities the opportunity to live and receive services in the community instead of in institutions.
“As affirmed by the Supreme Court over a decade ago, people with disabilities should be given the same opportunities to participate in community life as those without disabilities,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “This agreement will enable people in Virginia who have developmental disabilities to live successfully in their homes and communities. I commend Governor McDonnell for his long-standing leadership on this issue, and we will continue to work with states around the country, as we have with Georgia, Delaware and Virginia, to ensure that people with disabilities are given the choice to live in community-based settings.”
Excerpt from The New York Times: (click for entire article)
When does a broken heart become a diagnosis?
In a bitter skirmish over the definition of depression, a new report contends that a proposed change to the diagnosis would characterize grieving as a disorder and greatly increase the number of people treated for it.
The criteria for depression are being reviewed by the American Psychiatric Association, which is finishing work on the fifth edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or D.S.M., the first since 1994. The manual is the standard reference for the field, shaping treatment and insurance decisions, and its revisions will affect the lives of millions of people for years to come.
Excerpt from AARP: (click for entire article)
Everywhere you turn — from the corner bakery to the stadium concession stand — you’re increasingly likely to find gluten-free foods. Americans spent $2.6 billion on gluten-free products in 2010, 30 percent more than four years earlier.
Clearly gluten — a protein found in wheat, barley and rye — is today's ingredient non grata.
Is gluten-free just another foodie fad? Or is it a potentially dangerous ingredient?
The answer is complicated.
Excerpt from The Chicago Tribune: (click for entire article)
Federal authorities have approved a nursing home bed tax that will allow Illinois to collect more than $100 million a year in new Medicaid money that officials say will be used to boost facility staffing levels and implement other safety reforms mandated by a landmark 2010 overhaul, the Tribune has learned.
Gov. Pat Quinn, who is expected to announce the federal approval Tuesday, pushed hard for the tax as a way to hire more state inspectors and finance other reforms in Illinois' troubled long-term care system without dipping into the state's already-depleted coffers.
Excerpt from USA Today: (click for entire article)
After reading about Carol and Bob Blackwell's situation, and the fact that once the symptoms of Alzheimer's appear there seems to be little to be done to halt its progression, I simply cannot understand why so much more is being spent on programs to stop obesity.
I have had Type 1 diabetes for more than 40 years. At 21, I had to commit to taking care of my body and to changing my lifestyle. I am now 63 with relatively few complications from the disease.
Obesity has become such a problem because people's lifestyles have become sedentary — sitting in front of the computer and television instead of exercising and being involved in outdoor activities.
Excerpt from Psych Central: (click for entire article)
A new study finds that autistic kids are fascinated by screen-based technology. In fact, adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) appear to spend a majority of their free time using or watching screen-based media.
“Even though parents and clinicians have often observed that children with ASD tend to be preoccupied with screen-based media, ours is the first large-scale study to explore this issue,” said Micah Mazurek, Ph.D., a University of Missouri assistant professor in the School of Health Professions.
“We found that 64 percent of adolescents with ASD spent most of their free time watching TV and playing video and computer games. These rates were much higher than among those with other types of disabilities. On the other hand, adolescents with ASD were less likely to spend time using email and social media.”