Climate Good for a Federal Minimum Wage Increase

The future looks sunnier now for a federal minimum wage increase. Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has put the wage increase high on her agenda, and in a recent post-election press conference, President Bush indicated willingness to “find common ground” on this issue. The current federal minimum wage is a puny $5.15 per hour and has not been increased in 10 years! The passage of a significant federal minimum wage increase would benefit children and families currently living in poverty.

For more information on what people of faith and faith-based organizations have done and can do to support a wage increase, please visit http://www.letjusticeroll.org

Federal Government Acts to Deprive Newborns of Health Care

The NYTimes recently highlighted
how the federal government is discouraging immigrants from seeking medical care for their infant children…

"Under a new federal policy, children born in the United States to illegal immigrants with low incomes will no
longer be automatically entitled to health insurance through Medicaid, Bush administration officials said
Thursday.

Doctors and hospitals said the policy change would make it more difficult for such infants, who are United
States citizens, to obtain health care needed in the first year of life.

...In the past, once a woman received emergency care under Medicaid for the birth of a baby, the child was deemed eligible for coverage as well, and states had to cover the children for one year from the date of birth.

Under the new policy, an application must be filed for the child, and the parents must provide documents to prove the child’s citizenship."

As one doctor interviewed in the article explains, the federal government’s interpretation of the law has the impact of intimidating immigrant parents.

This is a cold-hearted ploy to deprive newborns of needed health care.