...
Post by Rudy CanozaPost by Merlin DorfmanAnd why do you "blame" Kennedy for the de-institutional-
ization? It was started by Reagan when he was governor
of California, and then moved to national policy.
That's an absolute falsehood, and it is THE MOST widely
repeated falsehood about homelessness. It did *NOT*
start under Reagan as governor of California, and
Reagan as president had nothing whatever to do with it.
If you want to go back to the very beginnings, it was in the
1950s:
http://www.sfhsn.org/downloads/documents/issues/hsn_iss_oth_tolve_08-15-01.pdf
"The push for non-profit integration into social services began
in earnest with the mental health privatization movement of the
1950s. While nongovernmental organizations like the University of
California at San Francisco (UCSF) had long provided services in
conjunction with the City, demand for non-profit services rose
markedly after a watershed piece of Californian legislation: the
Short-Doyle Act of 1957. Designed to inject a greater level of
humanity into the treatment of mentally ill patients and to
increase competition between local government and private
organizations, the Short-Doyle Act ended the policy of
incarcerating mentally ill patients and demanded a greater
utilization of CBOs. The Short-Doyle Act stipulated that each
county should utilize available private and non-profit mental
health resources and facilities in the county prior to developing
new county-operated services."
Kennedy did indeed sign a Federal law that spoke in this same
vein, based presumably on his observations of how his sister was
treated in mental institutions:
http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/collections/drilm/resources/timeline.html
"1963
* President Kennedy, in an address to Congress, calls for a reduction,
'over a number of years, and by hundreds of thousands, [in the number] of
persons confined' to residential institutions, and he asks that methods be
found 'to retain in and return to the community the mentally ill and
mentally retarded, and there to restore and revitalize their lives through
better health programs and strengthened educational and rehabilitation
services.' Though not labeled such at the time, this is a call for
deinstitutionalization and increased community services.
* Congress passes the Mental Retardation Facilities and Community Health
Centers Construction Act, authorizing federal grants for the construction of
public and private non-profit community mental health centers."
But as far as I can tell, nothing really came of this in terms
of concrete appropriation of funds, implementing laws, etc. It was
just an expression of a viewpoiont.
The first real implementation was in California under Reagan.
I'm not guessing, I lived in California then (as now), and I
remember this, and that it did not follow on federal inititiatives
or programs in other states:
http://www.psychlaws.org/generalResources/article45.htm
"How did it get to be this way?
The short answer is 'deinstitutionalization.' During the 1960s,
many people began accusing the state mental hospitals of
violating the civil rights of patients. Some families did, of
course, commit incorrigible teenagers or eccentric relatives to
years of involuntary confinement and unspeakable treatment.
Nurse Ratched, the sadistic nurse famously portrayed in the book
and film 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest,' became a symbol of
institutional indifference to the mentally ill.
By the late 1960s, the idea that the mentally ill were not so
different from the rest of us, or perhaps were even a little bit
more sane, became trendy. Reformers dreamed of taking the
mentally ill out of the large institutions and housing them in
smaller, community-based residences where they could live more
productive and fulfilling lives.
In 1967, Gov. Ronald Reagan signed the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act
(LPS), which went into effect in 1969 and quickly became a
national model. Among other things, it prohibited forced
medication or extended hospital stays without a judicial hearing.
...
The LPS Act emptied out the state's mental hospitals but resulted
in an explosion of homelessness. Legislators never provided enough
money for community-based programs to provide treatment and
shelter. Even the most modest programs encountered local
resistance.
'No neighborhood wanted the mentally ill living among them,'
recalled former state Sen. Tom Bates.
Lanterman later expressed regret at the way the law was carried out.
'I wanted the law to help the mentally ill,' he said. 'I never meant
for it to prevent those who need care from receiving it.'
But that's exactly what happened for three decades."
...
Post by Rudy CanozaPost by Merlin DorfmanJust as
the great majority of bankruptcies are not due to spending
sprees but to medical bills, unemployment, divorce or other
family crisis,
You don't have any support whatever for that claim. It
may or may not be true, but *YOU* don't have any
support for it; you're just repeating a belief you hold.
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2005/bankruptcy_study.html
"Medical Bills Leading Cause of Bankruptcy, Harvard Study Finds
February 3, 2005
Illness and medical bills caused half of the 1,458,000 personal
bankruptcies in 2001, according to a study published by the journal
Health Affairs.
The study estimates that medical bankruptcies affect about 2
million Americans annually -- counting debtors and their dependents,
including about 700,000 children.
Surprisingly, most of those bankrupted by illness had health
insurance. More than three-quarters were insured at the start of the
bankrupting illness. However, 38 percent had lost coverage at least
temporarily by the time they filed for bankruptcy.
Most of the medical bankruptcy filers were middle class; 56 percent
owned a home and the same number had attended college. In many cases,
illness forced breadwinners to take time off from work -- losing
income and job-based health insurance precisely when families needed
it most.
Families in bankruptcy suffered many privations -- 30 percent had a
utility cut off and 61 percent went without needed medical care.
The research, carried out jointly by researchers at Harvard Law School
and Harvard Medical School, is the first in-depth study of medical
causes of bankruptcy. With the cooperation of bankruptcy judges in five
Federal districts (in California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and
Texas) they administered questionnaires to bankruptcy filers and
reviewed their court records.
Dr. David Himmelstein, the lead author of the study and an Associate
Professor of Medicine at Harvard commented: 'Unless you're Bill Gates
you're just one serious illness away from bankruptcy. Most of the
medically bankrupt were average Americans who happened to get sick.'
Today's health insurance policies -- with high deductibles, co-pays,
and many exclusions -- offer little protection during a serious
illness. Uncovered medical bills averaged $13,460 for those with
private insurance at the start of their illness. People with cancer
had average medical debts of $35,878."
This study shows a correlation between bankruptcy and divorce,
but stops short of a cause-and-effect conclusion:
http://www.usdoj.gov/ust/eo/public_affairs/articles/docs/abi01sepnumbers.html
"This is why studies about the causes of bankruptcy provide ambiguous
or insufficient guidance for answering bankruptcy policy questions.
The data always require interpretations that include a set of
assumptions that go beyond the numbers themselves. Given different
assumptions, the numbers will be interpreted differently. If we assume
that there is less shame in society than there used to be, we are
likely to interpret statistics regarding debt, divorce and bankruptcy
differently than if we assume otherwise, but the current data don't
prove the assumption either way. Our attitudes about debtors and about
appropriate legal changes are, nevertheless, guided by our assumptions
as well as our interpretations of the data."
And here's the American Bankers Association, crowing about the
atrocious bankruptcy "reform" of 2005:
http://www.aba.com/Press+Room/100306bankruptcyreformeffects.htm
"Divorce, job loss and illness - the most common causes of bankruptcy -
will continue to drive bankruptcy filings."
A bankruptcy lawyer is hardly the best source of unbiased
information, but on the other hand they do see a lot of bankrupt
people, so they probably know the truth (whether they choose to
tell it or not). Note the sequence of "leading causes:"
http://www.ifyouneedhelp.com/causes.html
"Causes of Bankruptcy
We believe it is important for our clients to understand the reasons
for their financial difficulties. Although bankruptcy will give you
relief from your debt, if you have not solved the underlying cause
of your financial problems, you are likely to run into trouble again
and again.
Although not scientific by any means, from our experience in the
bankruptcy courts and with our clients, we have determined these are
the main reasons why people file bankruptcy:
1) Job loss or income reduction is by the far the leading cause of
bankruptcy. Most New Mexicans are working paycheck to paycheck, with
little or no reserve in the event they are laid off or their hours
are reduced...
2) Illness and divorce are probably the second leading causes of
bankruptcy. Both usually take people by surprise and cause economic
upheavals.
3) Predatory lending practices are common in New Mexico and bankruptcy
often is the only way out for people. Among the abuses caused by
creditors are mortgage loans established in a manner that prevents the
principal balance from ever being reduced no matter how long payments
are made. Payday loans and title loans, with interest rates of 400 to
1000% per annum also make it almost impossible for most people to pay
back the loans. Bankruptcy becomes inevitable.
4) A large number of New Mexico bankruptcies have to do with obsessive-
compulsive behaviors. This disorder manifests as addictions to
prescription and illegal drugs, gambling, pornography and dancers,
prostitution, shopping, and alcohol. The common thread of each form of
the disorder is it produces mood-altering states and the victim of the
disorder remains in strong denial and refuses treatment. The disorder
tends to be chronic, escalating, and produces withdrawal symptoms when
the behavior is suddenly stopped. Victims of this disorder continue
with their destructive behaviors even after suffering negative
consequences. In fact, the negative consequences of their addiction
often trigger more destructive behavior and the victim spirals downward.
Needless to say, if you do not get help with the underlying disorder,
bankruptcy will only offer a short-term solution to your problems."