CHAPTER 18

1. CHAPTER 18 Date: April 5, 2011Topic: Social Welfare PolicymakingAim: How does the United States structure its social welfare system?Do Now: Multiple Choice Questions. Then write down a brief summary of what we covered yesterday.

2. THIS POOR GUY IS POOR? WHY DO YOU THINK HE IS POOR? IS IT HIS FAULT? IS IT THE UNITED STATES RESPONSIBILITY TO HELP THIS GUY?

3. The Social Welfare Debate • Two main types: • Entitlement programs: Government benefits that certain qualified individuals are entitled to by law, regardless of need. • Ex: Medicare. • Means-tested programs: Government programs only available to individuals below a poverty line. • Ex: unemployment payments. • Deserving vs. Undeserving poor.

4. April 6, 2011 • Do Now: Multiple Choice Questions • Notes. • Video Time. • Notes.

5. Income, Poverty, andPublic Policy • Who’s Getting What? • Income: amount of funds collected between any two points in time. • Wealth: amount of funds already owned. From Table 18.1

6. Income, Poverty, andPublic Policy • Who’s Poor in America? • Poverty Line: considers what a family must spend for an austere standard of living. • In 2011 a family of three had a poverty line of $18,530. • Many people move in and out of poverty in a year’s time. • High rates of poverty among unmarried women. POVERTY CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY

7. POVERTY IN AMERICA HI, IM MILTON FRIEDMAN YOU READ AN ARTICLE I WROTE THE OTHER DAY! HELP ME!

8. Income, Poverty, andPublic Policy Figure 18.1- Poverty Rates, 1999

11. April 7, 2011 • Do Now: Multiple Choice Questions. • Notes. • Video Clip. • Notes. • Remember your dates. IM OLD…I FORGOT WHAT WE WERE DOING YESTERDAY.

12. Income, Poverty, andPublic Policy • What Part Does Government Play? • Taxation. • Progressive tax: people with higher incomes pay a greater share. • Proportional tax: all people pay the same share of their income. Ex: Not in the US and Canada. • Regressive tax: opposite of a progressive tax. Ex: tax on food – larger percentage of the persons income. IS IT FAIR? WHAT TYPE OF TAX DO WE HAVE?

13. Income, Poverty, andPublic Policy • What Part Does Government Play? • Government Expenditures. • Transfer payments: benefits given by the government directly to individuals. • Some transfer benefits are actual money  Social Security beneficiaries and retired government employees. • Other transfer benefits are “in kind” benefits where recipients get a benefit without getting actual money. • Ex: food stamps. • Some are entitlement programs, others are means-tested.

14. April 8, 2011 • Do Now: VOCABULARY QUIZ – I’ll give you three minutes to quickly review the words, because that’s the kind of guy I am. • Notes. • Video Clip. • Notes. • You only have 12 words!.

15. 1.) Social welfare policies. 2.) Income distribution. 3.) Relative deprivation. 4.) Income. 5.) Wealth. 6.) Poverty Line. 7.) Culture of poverty. 8.) Urban underclass. 9.) Progressive Tax. 10.) Proportional Tax. 11.) Regressive Tax. 12.) Transfer Payments. HERE ARE THE WORDS!

16. April 11, 2011 • Do Now: Multiple Choice Questions. • Notes. • Video Time. • Notes. • Remember your due dates be sure to do a thorough job on those outlines. • May 10th is so very close.

17. The Evolution of American Social Welfare Programs • The New Deal and the Elderly • The Great Depression led many citizens to want the government to help protect against economic downturns and causes of poverty beyond their control. • Social Security Act of 1935 was the first major step by the federal government to help protect people against absolute poverty. ARE YOU GOING TO HELP ME?

19. April 12, 2011 • Do Now: Multiple Choice Questions • Hand out reading. • I will put the words for the chapters 19/20 quiz online –hard copy to follow later on today/tomorrow. • Remember the dates.

20. The Evolution of American Social Welfare Programs • President Johnson and the Great Society • Johnson declared a “war on poverty” and created many new programs and it was his leadership that made the difference. • Medicare, school-aid programs and anti-poverty programs were some examples. • Ex: Medicare  entitlement program for Americans 65 or older. • Ex: Medicaid  means tested program for low income Americans • Other programs were designed to provide training and jobs, not just transfer payments.

22. The Evolution of American Social Welfare Programs • President Reagan and the Limits to the Great Society • Reagan targeted benefit programs to cut government spending. • Many programs had benefits reduced, and people were removed from benefit rolls. • Democrats worked to lessen the cut of the benefits to try and protect the truly poor. • HOW ABOUT THE EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT!  money that is redistributed to the working poor.

23. April 13, 2011 • Do Now: Multiple Choice Questions • Remember the due dates. • I’m really really old…..what did we do yesterday?

24. The Evolution of American Social Welfare Programs • Welfare Reform in 1990’s • Clinton (a Democrat) was able to pass a more significant welfare reform law than his Republican predecessors. • Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act. • The new program put limits on the amount of time a person could receive benefits – Federal TANF money – Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. • It also gave the states money to run their own welfare programs.

27. IN THE NEAR FUTURE, WE COULD HAVE THIS SAME PROBLEM WITH SOCIAL SECURITY….BECAUSE IT IS A PAY OUT AS YOU GO SYSTEM…..THE MONEY YOUR’RE PUTTING INTO SS NOW IS BEING PAID OUT TO PEOPLE…..NOW!...SO YOU COULD ARRIVE AT THE PROM ONLY NOT ALLOWED IN! THIS IS TOM…HE’S LOOKING FORWARD TO GOING TO THE PROM - HE BOUGHT A TUX, GOT A HAIRCUT ETC.……HE ARRIVES AT THE PROM ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT ANYONE WITH THE LAST NAME OF VOLBERG WILL NOT BE ALLOWED IN…

28. April 18, 2011 • Do Now: Multiple Choice Questions • Test tomorrow  focus on chapter 18. • What we do not finish you will be responsible for! • Discretionary Spending the part of the federal budget that is negotiated between the Congress and President each year as part of the budget process. Ex: Defense budget • Mandatory Spending  part of the budget that is mandated. Ex: Medicare/Medicaid/Social Security. • April 10, 2011  Budget Deficit = $14.2 Trillion. • Budget Deficit the situation where you spend more money than what you take in. • Debt the amount you borrowed plus your interest. • Logrolling the trading of votes by Congressmen. Little influence by the national party.

29. Multiple Choice Questions 13-23 • 13.) D – 74% • 14.) E – 73% • 15.) A – 85% • 16.) C – 77% • 17.) D – 68% • 18.) E – 60% • 19.) D – 42% • 20.) B – 62% • 21.) D – 67% • 22.) E – 55% • 23.) A – 45% THESE PERCENTAGES ARE FOR EVERYONE WHO TOOK THE TEST IN 1999.

30. The Future of Social Welfare Policy • The Entitlement Programs: Living on Borrowed Time? • Long-term sustainability of entitlement programs is hotly debated. • What can be done about Social Security? • Cut benefits? • Raise tax rates? • Allow people to invest on their own? SHOULD GOVERNMENT SPONSORED RETIREMENT BENEFITS BE A RIGHT? SHOULD SOCIAL SECURITY BECOME A MEANS TESTED PROGRAM FOR THE ELDERLY?

31. The Future of Social Welfare Policy • The Means-Tested Programs: Do They Work? • Programs for the poor are not as popular as programs for the elderly. • The percentage of people in poverty has not changed significantly since the 1960’s. • But there is little agreement on if the programs help people in poverty or not.

32. Date: April 18, 2011Topic: Policy Making for Health Care and the Environment.Aim: How does the government form opinions on health care and the environment?Do Now: Multiple Choice Questions.

33. Health Care Policy • The Health of Americans • Americans generally lag behind in some key health statistics. • Specifically a lower life expectancy and higher infant mortality rate. • The Cost of Health Care • Americans spend more than any other country. • Doctors don’t compete, private insurance pays, some procedures are only available in U.S.

34. Health Care Policy • Access to Health Care • About 16 million Americans have no health insurance. • Often linked to having a job- lose the job, lose the health insurance. • About 20 million Americans have inadequate health insurance.

36. Health Care Policy • Access to Health Care • Health Maintenance Organization (HMO): provide health care for a yearly fee through contracts or insurance companies. • Covers about 60 percent of Americans. • Managed care: focuses more on prevention of illnesses than treatments. • Managed Care is designed to reduce costs through oversight and limiting patient choices.

37. Health Care Policy • The Role of Government in Health Care • Governments have the smallest role. • Medicare: provides hospitalization insurance for elderly and optional coverage for other medical expenses. • Medicaid: public assistance program to provide health care for the poor. Paid for by national and state governments.

38. The Future of Social Welfare Policy • Social Welfare Policy Elsewhere • Many industrialized nations are more generous than the U.S. • But the tax rates are higher in those countries than in the U.S. • Other countries (especially European) have worked to reform their welfare programs.

39. Understanding Social Welfare Policy • Democracy and Social Welfare • The U.S. has the smallest welfare system. • There is considerable unequal political participation by those that use the programs. • Social Welfare Policy and the Scope of Government • When social welfare costs go up, the size of government goes up. • What goes up is often difficult to bring down.