Question

1.What effect did the passage of the Social Security Act of 1935 have on the federal government's role in health and welfare? What aspects of the original Social Security Act can be seen in present-day social welfare programs?

2.How does the changing shape of the American economy change the shape of American poverty?

3.If you had the power to eradicate poverty in the United States, what is the single most important strategy that you would put in place to do so and why?

4.Identify at least five factors associated with homelessness. Suggest at least one possible intervention strategy for each factor.

5.Why do you think that families with children are the fastest-growing component of the homeless population?  Cite specific examples to support your answer

Answer 1

1. On August 14, 1935, the Social Security Act established a system of old-age benefits for workers, benefits for victims of industrial accidents, unemployment insurance, aid for dependent mothers and children, the blind, and the physically handicapped.

The Social Security Act passed to provide benefits to retirees based on their earnings history and on August 14, 1935, Roosevelt signed it into law. This firmly placed the burden of economic security for American citizens on the federal government's shoulders.

.An act to provide for the general welfare by establishing a system of Federal old-age benefits, and by enabling the several States to make more adequate provision for aged persons, blind persons, dependent and crippled children, maternal and child welfare, public health, and the administration of their unemployment .

The Social Security Act was signed into law by President Roosevelt on August 14, 1935. In addition to several provisions for general welfare, the new Act created a social insurance program designed to pay retired workers age 65 or older a continuing income after retirement.

Eighty-five years after President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act on August 14, 1935, Social Security remains one of the nation's most successful, effective, and popular programs.

The Social Security Act of 1935 excluded from coverage about half the workers in the American economy. Among the excluded groups were agricultural and domestic workers—a large percentage of whom were African Americans.

Medicare is funded by the Social Security Administration. Which means it's funded by taxpayers: We all pay 1.45% of our earnings into FICA - Federal Insurance Contributions Act, if you're into deciphering acronyms - which go toward Medicare. Employers pay another 1.45%, bringing the total to 2.9%.

The Act also established the Social Security Board, which later became the Social Security Administration, to structure the Social Security Act and figure out the logistics of implementing it.

Tens of millions of people in the United States have received financial assistance through the Social Security Act.

After signing the Social Security Act, President Roosevelt established a three-person board to administer the program with the goal of starting payroll tax deductions for enrollees by January 1, 1937

In 2010, the Social Security Administration ( SSA ) celebrates the 75th anniversary of the passage of the Social Security Act. In those 75 years, SSA has been responsible for programs providing unemployment insurance, child welfare, and supervision of credit unions, among other duties.

The Act created several programs that, even today, form the basis for the government's role in providing income security, specifically, the old-age insurance, unemployment insurance, and Aid to Families with Dependent Children ( AFDC ) programs.

2. As the economy grows, so do opportunities for employment and income growth. Stronger labor markets and higher income levels tend to help those families living in poverty move above the poverty threshold.

The independent variables that will be treated as contributing to the prevalence of poverty include education, divorce, female-headed household, crime, welfare spending, unemployment, and minimum wage. In the following paragraphs, these variables will be conceptually defined.

The top causes of poverty around the world.

• Inadequate access to clean water and nutritious food.
• Little or no access to livelihoods or jobs.
• Conflict.
• Inequality.
• Poor education.
• Climate change.
• Lack of infrastructure.
• Limited capacity of the government.

Poverty is linked with negative conditions such as substandard housing, homelessness, inadequate nutrition and food insecurity, inadequate child care, lack of access to health care, unsafe neighborhoods, and underresourced schools which adversely impact our nation's children.

3. If i get a chance to eradicate poverty definitely i will implement the programme that -"Increase employment".

Reducing poverty through employment requires three major thrusts: (1) generate employment, (2) increase employability, and (3) make the labor markets more efficient. The first thrust works on the demand side of the labor market by creating job opportunities appropriate to the skills of the poor.

the relationship between poverty and employment lies in the extent to which income generated from employment permits workers and their dependants to obtain the goods and services necessary to meet basic needs.

A variety of public policies and private strategies are needed to generate employment. Even though the private sector is primarily responsible for job creation, governments, international organizations, and NGOs can and should facilitate this process. Generating employment requires regulatory policies that facilitate the creation and growth of private businesses; the World Bank’s Doing Business project provides an objective basis for understanding and improving the regulatory environment for business.

4 .Homelessness is a complex social problem with a variety of underlying economic and social factors such as poverty, lack of affordable housing, uncertain physical and mental health, addictions, and community and family breakdown .

The top four causes of homelessness among unaccompanied individuals were (1) lack of affordable housing, (2) unemployment, (3) poverty, (4) mental illness and the lack of needed services, and (5) substance abuse and the lack of needed services.

According to survey respondents, government intervention—most often in the form of financial assistance—is crucial to producing affordable housing

Lack of affordable housing,

In some cases, relief from government regulations substantially lowers housing costs.

Housing developers and city officials put together housing projects on a case-by-case basis by combining funding from several sources with zoning variances and fee waivers. While some other states have chosen more systematic approaches, by requiring the production of affordable housing, Minnesota’s Livable Communities Act is a voluntary, incentive-based approach to providing affordable housing that has been only marginally successful in producing more affordable housing.

Unemployment:

Use of Labour-intensive Technology is one of the strategy to overcome unemployment.

In simple words labour intensive technique is that which uses comparatively larger amount of labour and small doses of capital. It is that technique by which more of labour and less of capital is required for the process of production.

Industry or process where a larger portion of total costs is due to labor as compared with the portion for costs incurred in purchase, maintenance, and depreciation of capital equipment. Agriculture, construction, and coal-mining industries are examples of labor intensive industries.

Advantages
Customised products are easier to make
Less expensive machinery costs
Humans can use their own initiative and problem solve

Poverty:

Social Security is, , the most powerful anti-poverty program in the United State. Smaller programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP (commonly known as “food stamps”) and Supplemental Security Income each prevented over 3 million people from falling into poverty.

Strategy 1: raise the incomes of those with low incomes.

Mental illness and the lack of needed services:

When a loved one is suffering from a mental health issue and addiction, an intervention will not only steer them towards recovery, but it will also help them find treatment for mental disorders that fuel addiction. An intervention must take place with sensitivity, love and professional support to be successful.

Psychosocial interventions for psychoses involve a number of interventions including working with drug treatment, therapies and rehabilitation strategies. They can include CBT, social skills training and psycho-education.

Substance abuse and the lack of needed services:

A public health approach will also reduce collateral damage created by substance misuse, such as infectious disease transmission and motor vehicle crashes. Thus, promoting much wider adoption of appropriate evidence-based prevention, treatment, and recovery strategies needs to be a top public health priorities

5 .One of the fastest growing segments of the homeless population is families with children. A 2005 study revealed that of the counted homeless population there were 98,452 homeless families, making up 41% of the entire homeless population (Homelessness Counts, 2007).

• When compared to low-income and homeless families, children experiencing homelessness have been shown to have higher levels of emotional and behavioral problems; Have increased risk of serious health problems; Are more likely to experience separations from their families;
• Women and families represent the fastest growing groups of the homeless population in the United States. Approximately 34% of the homeless population are families with children.
• California and New York, are the two most populous U.S. cities, had the highest number of people experiencing homelessness.
• Children born into homelessness are more likely to have low birth weights and are at greater risk of death. Homelessness also exposes infants to environmental factors that can endanger their health. Because homeless families often have little access to health care, many homeless infants lack essential immunizations.