Debating Immigration, first published in 2007, presents 18 original essays, written by some of the world's leading experts and pre-eminent academics, that explore the nuances of contemporary ...immigration and citizenship affecting the United States and Europe. The volume is organized around the following themes: religion and philosophy, law and policy, economics and demographics, race and ethnicity, and cosmopolitanism. Critical questions addressed include: What accounts for the disconnect between public attitudes about immigration and the policies produced by elected officials? Why has the United States not developed a well-articulated public philosophy of immigration? What does the Christian Bible have to say about immigration policy? What are our moral and social obligations to our fellow citizens, and do these trump our obligations to the world's poor? How does the European experience differ from the American situation?
The author discusses the production of the Be the People television show. The first episode aired on October 12, 2012. The show featured a half-hour talk format that addressed political, social, and ...cultural issues from a Judeo-Christian perspective.
FAKE CRIMES Swain, Carol M
First things (New York, N.Y.),
05/2018
283
Journal Article
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is a powerful progressive advocacy group that says its primary mission is to fight hatred, teach tolerance, and seek justice. Despite its noble beginnings in ...the years following the civil rights movement, during which it fought white supremacist groups resisting social change and the rule of law, the SPLC now works to advance the agenda of the cultural left. Ironically, given the deeply Christian character of the civil rights movement, the SPLC now equates traditional Christian and pro-family organizations with hate groups such as the Aryan Nations, the Ku Klux Klan, and neo-Nazis. What makes these religious groups an SPLC target? A shared biblical worldview that condemns homosexuality and transgenderism.
An authentic Judeo-Christian approach to reform should recognize the context of the scriptures, respect the rule of law, and reassess what is meant by the word "comprehensive." The "stranger" of the ...Hebrew Bible may be best understood as a resident alien, a non-citizen who agrees to abide by the laws of the community into which he or she has come. Using that definition, many illegal aliens in the US would not qualify. The New Testament is clear that citizens and non-citizens are obliged to obey the governing authorities. Truly comprehensive immigration reform must address a host of issues including birthright, citizenship, and family reunification.
To examine drug costs and entry and exit rates into the Part D coverage gap for beneficiaries with diabetes in Medicare Advantage managed care plans.
Cross-sectional observational study.
Study ...patients were Medicare Advantage Part D beneficiaries with diabetes from 2 large California health plans who were continuously enrolled in 2006 and had a drug coverage gap starting at $2250. Entry and exit into the gap, total drug costs, and out-of-pocket drug costs were determined using pharmacy databases.
In 2006, 26% of the 42,801 beneficiaries with diabetes reached the coverage gap; 2% of beneficiaries exited the gap and qualified for catastrophic coverage. Beneficiaries incurred a mean of $2182 in total drug costs during 2006. Drug expenditures remained stable over the year for beneficiaries who did not enter the gap. For beneficiaries who entered the gap, total drug costs were higher overall and decreased at year's end as out-of-pocket expenses increased.
Fewer diabetes patients in this study entered the coverage gap than had been previously estimated, but the entry rate was much higher than that of the general Medicare Advantage Part D population. Patients entering the gap had lower subsequent monthly drug expenditures; this may be due to lower-than-expected drug prices and greater use of generics in managed care, or it may potentially signal poorer drug adherence. Future work should examine these hypotheses and explore risk factors for entering the Part D coverage gap.
Behind this discussion of minority achievement is a story of one who transcended poverty and rose to the top of American education. Carol Swain advises that a student from a poor family should not be ...penalized because her parents are not able to involve themselves in school. This and other recommendations on policy reflect a profoundly personal awareness of what it meant to be a smart, ambitious black student caught in a disappointing educational environment. (Contains 9 notes.)
Panelists discuss to what degree an expansive immigration policy might suppress wages or limit opportunities for workers in the United States. There is some competition between low-skilled American ...workers and undocumented immigrants, and racism and poverty exacerbate anti-immigrant sentiments. Poor public education is partially to blame for the high number of unemployed, low-skilled Americans. Illegal immigration may be more likely than legal immigration to suppress wages because unscrupulous employers do not adhere to labor standards. Employer sanctions and wider adoption of programs like E-Verify are needed. Note: This is an edited and abridged transcript of a panel discussion.
New York State has been an epicenter for both the US coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and HIV/AIDS epidemics. Persons living with diagnosed HIV may be more prone to COVID-19 infection and severe ...outcomes, yet few studies have assessed this possibility at a population level.
To evaluate the association between HIV diagnosis and COVID-19 diagnosis, hospitalization, and in-hospital death in New York State.
This cohort study, conducted in New York State, including New York City, between March 1 and June 15, 2020, matched data from HIV surveillance, COVID-19 laboratory-confirmed diagnoses, and hospitalization databases to provide a full population-level comparison of COVID-19 outcomes between persons living with diagnosed HIV and persons living without diagnosed HIV.
Diagnosis of HIV infection through December 31, 2019.
The main outcomes were COVID-19 diagnosis, hospitalization, and in-hospital death. COVID-19 diagnoses, hospitalizations, and in-hospital death rates comparing persons living with diagnosed HIV with persons living without dianosed HIV were computed, with unadjusted rate ratios and indirect standardized rate ratios (sRR), adjusting for sex, age, and region. Adjusted rate ratios (aRRs) for outcomes specific to persons living with diagnosed HIV were assessed by age, sex, region, race/ethnicity, transmission risk, and CD4+ T-cell count-defined HIV disease stage, using Poisson regression models.
A total of 2988 persons living with diagnosed HIV (2109 men 70.6%; 2409 living in New York City 80.6%; mean SD age, 54.0 13.3 years) received a diagnosis of COVID-19. Of these persons living with diagnosed HIV, 896 were hospitalized and 207 died in the hospital through June 15, 2020. After standardization, persons living with diagnosed HIV and persons living without diagnosed HIV had similar diagnosis rates (sRR, 0.94 95% CI, 0.91-0.97), but persons living with diagnosed HIV were hospitalized more than persons living without diagnosed HIV, per population (sRR, 1.38 95% CI, 1.29-1.47) and among those diagnosed (sRR, 1.47 95% CI, 1.37-1.56). Elevated mortality among persons living with diagnosed HIV was observed per population (sRR, 1.23 95% CI, 1.07-1.40) and among those diagnosed (sRR, 1.30 95% CI, 1.13-1.48) but not among those hospitalized (sRR, 0.96 95% CI, 0.83-1.09). Among persons living with diagnosed HIV, non-Hispanic Black individuals (aRR, 1.59 95% CI, 1.40-1.81) and Hispanic individuals (aRR, 2.08 95% CI, 1.83-2.37) were more likely to receive a diagnosis of COVID-19 than White individuals, but they were not more likely to be hospitalized once they received a diagnosis or to die once hospitalized. Hospitalization risk increased with disease progression to HIV stage 2 (aRR, 1.29 95% CI, 1.11-1.49) and stage 3 (aRR, 1.69 95% CI, 1.38-2.07) relative to stage 1.
In this cohort study, persons living with diagnosed HIV experienced poorer COVID-related outcomes relative to persons living without diagnosed HIV; Previous HIV diagnosis was associated with higher rates of severe disease requiring hospitalization, and hospitalization risk increased with progression of HIV disease stage.
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