Some TANF recipients may have disabilities that would qualify them for the specialized employment preparation services Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agencies provide. TANF recipients may seek out VR services on their own, or be referred to VR by a TANF case manager on his or her own accord, however, because VR is an unfamiliar service system, few may be inclined to do so. Creating a formal partnership between the agencies can ensure that all TANF recipients who can benefit from VR services have access to them. Though linking the services of these two agencies through formal cooperative agreements is not a widespread strategy, some states have had such partnerships in place for many years and other states are developing them. This practice brief explores the benefits and challenges of linking TANF and VR services, describes partnerships that have been formed in Vermont and Iowa, then discusses key features that appear to be critical to developing a successful partnership. (author abstract)

Authors in this paper, published in the Health Affairs journal, provide estimates of the rates across States for participating children as well as uninsured eligible children. Nationally, 7.3 million were uninsured on any given day in 2008, and around sixty-five percent or 4.7 million were eligible but not enrolled in the public programs. Authors also give variation in participation rates across States, which range from fifty-five to ninety-five percent.

From the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, this report provides findings from the implementation evaluation of Head Start programs that participated in the "I Am Moving, I Am Learning" trainings. From the programs that participated in the spring 2006, program administrators, classroom teachers, and home visitors across many programs reported that they had increased children’s movement time and improved the food choices available to children.

As part of their Rural Communities Initiative Technical Assistance Action Plan, the Montana team identified the prevalence of substance abuse challenges within their TANF caseload as among one of their chief concerns. The site was particularly interested in exploring new techniques that would simultaneously promote work attachment and higher work participation rates (WPR) along with facilitating overcoming drug and alcohol addiction. Based on these goals, the Montana team convened a substance abuse case management training where TANF staff from Roosevelt County and the Fort Peck Reservation were introduced to new and effective case management approaches for participants with substance abuse barriers. The training also included job development and job placement strategies tailored for TANF participants with substance abuse barriers. The training took place November 17-19, 2009 and was led by staff from the UC Davis Center for Human Services. As a result of the substance abuse centered TA they received, the Montana site developed new approaches to managing participants with substance abuse challenges. In addition to utilizing a more assets-based case management approach (e.g. motivational interviewing strategies), the site is also working to implement community involvement strategies that incorporate substance abuse prevention techniques.

As a strategy to provide asset-based training for caseworkers and serve New Mexico's growing population of individuals with substance abuse barriers, New Mexico Works requested a substance abuse case management training, with a focus on motivational interviewing techniques. The training was designed and delivered by Dr. Alyssa Forcehimes from the University of New Mexico Center on Alcoholism, Substance Abuse and Addictions. The curriculum was delivered over one day in April 2009 and two days in July 2009. The training provided participants with an overview of substance abuse in the TANF population, strategies for building self-efficacy in TANF participants, and ways to motivate participants to make positive behavioral changes. The New Mexico substance abuse case management training was attended by 35 caseworkers and managers. Evaluations from the training indicated that participants acquired a set of tools that can assist their clients in overcoming substance abuse barriers. A section of the training was also dedicated to strategies for conducting train-the-trainer sessions at participants' home sites.

From the National Poverty Center at the University of Michigan, this policy brief outlines the health effects of social and economic policy. Non-health related policies may have positive impacts on the health and wellbeing of the beneficiaries of certain policies. Specifically, social and economic policy that may not be health-related can help supplement health care spending by helping participants maintain and improve their health.

From the U.S. Census Bureau, this report offers the latest statistics on income, poverty, and health insurance in the United States. The real median household income in the United States fell 3.6 percent between 2007 and 2008, from $52,163 to $50,303. Additionally, the nation’s official poverty rate in 2008 was 13.2 percent, which is up from 12.5 percent in 2007. The number of people without health insurance coverage rose from 45.7 million in 2007 to 46.3 million in 2008.

This issue brief is from HealthReform.gov, a Web site maintained by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In rural America, around 50 million residents have challenges accessing health care and in recent years, poverty and access to adequate health care providers has been increasing in rural areas. Due to the economic crisis, rural areas are particularly vulnerable, and this issue brief offers information on the current state of health care in rural areas.

This report is from the Urban Institute and outlines how the tax system can be used to enroll uninsured children into Medicaid and SCHIP programs. In 2004, 89.4 percent of uninsured children who qualified for Medicaid or the State Children’s Health Insurance Program lived in families who filed Federal income tax forms, and this method can be an effective outreach strategy to reach these vulnerable families.

The National Center on Substance Abuse and Child Welfare (NCSACW) is sponsored through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and Administration for Children and Families. NCSACW works with States and Tribes to improve their service delivery for expanding cross-systems collaboration in an effort to improve outcomes for children and families in their states. TANF agencies can learn a framework, tools, and strategies for increasing cross-systems collaboration.