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Poverty And Health In The United States
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Author :National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Publisher :National Academies Press ISBN 13 :0309452961 Total Pages :583 pages Book Rating :4.3/5 (94 download)
Book Synopsis Communities in Action by : National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Download or read book Communities in Action written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2017-04-27 with total page 583 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the United States, some populations suffer from far greater disparities in health than others. Those disparities are caused not only by fundamental differences in health status across segments of the population, but also because of inequities in factors that impact health status, so-called determinants of health. Only part of an individual's health status depends on his or her behavior and choice; community-wide problems like poverty, unemployment, poor education, inadequate housing, poor public transportation, interpersonal violence, and decaying neighborhoods also contribute to health inequities, as well as the historic and ongoing interplay of structures, policies, and norms that shape lives. When these factors are not optimal in a community, it does not mean they are intractable: such inequities can be mitigated by social policies that can shape health in powerful ways. Communities in Action: Pathways to Health Equity seeks to delineate the causes of and the solutions to health inequities in the United States. This report focuses on what communities can do to promote health equity, what actions are needed by the many and varied stakeholders that are part of communities or support them, as well as the root causes and structural barriers that need to be overcome.
Book Synopsis Poverty and the Myths of Health Care Reform by : Richard (Buz) Cooper
Download or read book Poverty and the Myths of Health Care Reform written by Richard (Buz) Cooper and published by Johns Hopkins University Press. This book was released on 2019-03-05 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Proof that high health care spending is linked directly to poverty. In Poverty and the Myths of Health Care Reform, Dr. Richard (Buz) Cooper argues that US poverty and high health care spending are inextricably entwined. Our nation's health care system bears a financial burden that is greater than in any other developed country in large part because impoverished patients use more health care, driving up costs across the board. Drawing on decades of research, Dr. Cooper illuminates the geographic patterns of poverty, wealth, and health care utilization that exist across neighborhoods, regions, and states—and among countries. He chronicles the historical threads that have led to such differences, examines the approaches that have been taken to combat poverty throughout US history, and analyzes the impact that structural changes now envisioned for clinical practice are likely to have. His research reveals that ignoring the impact of low income on health care utilization while blaming rising costs on waste, inefficiency, and unnecessary care has led policy makers to reshape clinical practice in ways that impede providers who care for the poor. The first book to address the fundamental nexus that binds poverty and income inequality to soaring health care utilization and spending, Poverty and the Myths of Health Care Reform is a must-read for medical professionals, public health scholars, politicians, and anyone concerned with the heavy burden of inequality on the health of Americans.
Book Synopsis U.S. Health in International Perspective by : National Research Council
Download or read book U.S. Health in International Perspective written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2013-04-12 with total page 421 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The United States is among the wealthiest nations in the world, but it is far from the healthiest. Although life expectancy and survival rates in the United States have improved dramatically over the past century, Americans live shorter lives and experience more injuries and illnesses than people in other high-income countries. The U.S. health disadvantage cannot be attributed solely to the adverse health status of racial or ethnic minorities or poor people: even highly advantaged Americans are in worse health than their counterparts in other, "peer" countries. In light of the new and growing evidence about the U.S. health disadvantage, the National Institutes of Health asked the National Research Council (NRC) and the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to convene a panel of experts to study the issue. The Panel on Understanding Cross-National Health Differences Among High-Income Countries examined whether the U.S. health disadvantage exists across the life span, considered potential explanations, and assessed the larger implications of the findings. U.S. Health in International Perspective presents detailed evidence on the issue, explores the possible explanations for the shorter and less healthy lives of Americans than those of people in comparable countries, and recommends actions by both government and nongovernment agencies and organizations to address the U.S. health disadvantage.
Author :National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Publisher :National Academies Press ISBN 13 :0309483980 Total Pages :619 pages Book Rating :4.3/5 (94 download)
Book Synopsis A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty by : National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Download or read book A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2019-09-16 with total page 619 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The strengths and abilities children develop from infancy through adolescence are crucial for their physical, emotional, and cognitive growth, which in turn help them to achieve success in school and to become responsible, economically self-sufficient, and healthy adults. Capable, responsible, and healthy adults are clearly the foundation of a well-functioning and prosperous society, yet America's future is not as secure as it could be because millions of American children live in families with incomes below the poverty line. A wealth of evidence suggests that a lack of adequate economic resources for families with children compromises these children's ability to grow and achieve adult success, hurting them and the broader society. A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty reviews the research on linkages between child poverty and child well-being, and analyzes the poverty-reducing effects of major assistance programs directed at children and families. This report also provides policy and program recommendations for reducing the number of children living in poverty in the United States by half within 10 years.
Book Synopsis Poverty, Health and Law by : Elizabeth Tobin Tyler
Download or read book Poverty, Health and Law written by Elizabeth Tobin Tyler and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Not every illness has a biological remedy. Poverty, Health and Law presents health in the broader social context of people''s lives, providing insights into the advancement of health through legal advocacy and interdisciplinary solutions to complex social problems. Focusing on basic legal rights and their relation to health--income and employment, housing, education, legal status, and personal safety--the authors provide information and insight into how the law may be used as a tool to improve health and how health care providers and lawyers can work together to invoke more effective and preventive remedies for patients and clients. As America prepares for major reform of its health care system, Poverty, Health and Law brings to the forefront the need to address the root causes of illness and poor health, particularly among vulnerable populations, by exploring remedies and innovations both within and outside of the health care system. "[T]his book is a helpful resource for existing and emerging MLPs that is sure to inspire improved care for the poor." -- World Medical & Health Policy "This book is intended to be used in at least three ways: (1) as a teaching tool primarily for legal and medical educators; (2) as a guidebook for newer or contemplated MLP programs; and (3) as a resource and reference work for MLP practitioners. It succeeds in each of these categories. ...The chief pedagogical goal, whose attainment is likely to be aided immeasurably by this volume, is not to get physicians and attorneys to think alike, but rather to teach members of each profession how and why the other professional thinks as he or she does. ...Taking on an ambitious and provocative agenda, they have done an excellent job of preparing future and current medical and legal practitioners to work collaboratively on behalf of patients/clients who need their joint advocacy. Any reader interested in the ways in which law and medicine might intersect on behalf of consumers'' well-being will benefit from attention to ''the'' book on the current achievements and future promise of MLPs." -- Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, Marshall B. Kapp, J.D., M.P.H., Director of the Florida State University Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine & Law "[This book] is an invaluable compendium of collective wisdom concerning the theory and practice of MLP--a gift. Those new to the field, whether practitioners, students, academics or bureaucrats, will scarcely believe their luck that such an impressive resource now exists; an exhaustive treatment of MLP from the foundations up. But Poverty, Health and Law isn''t just an edited collection of pieces from legal and medical practitioners from around the States--it is a thoughtful and strategic treatment of the subject with a unified structure and consistent educative approach. Intended as both a teaching tool and a resource for those engaged or interested in MLP, the book boasts numerous valuable features...[w]hether you are beginning to explore MLP or wanting to supercharge an existing partnership or alliance, Poverty, Health and Law will prove to be an indispensible reference." -- Peter Noble, Advocacy Health Alliances blog "Poverty, Health and Law is a valuable resource to enhance understanding of the non-medical factors that affect health. Garnering the expertise of authors from healthcare and law, Poverty, Health and Law is intentionally written to be accessible to students across disciplines of medicine, law, social work and public health. It is a crucial step in advancing the medical-legal partnership model and will also serve as a catalyst to stimulate further research about addressing the social determinants of health." -- David R. Williams, Ph.D., M.P.H., Florence Sprague Norman and Laura Smart Norman Professor of Public Health, Professor of African and African American Studies and of Sociology, Harvard University "This ground-breaking work shows how doctors and lawyers across the country can work together to protect the health of our most vulnerable populations. A comprehensive collection of compelling essays written by national experts, this volume is an invaluable teaching tool for the next generation of legal and health professionals to help guide and inspire such innovative interdisciplinary collaborations in the future. It is also a must-read for practitioners and policy-makers alike who want to understand how real health reform can happen at the grass-roots level." -- Charity Scott, J.D., Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Law, Health & Society, Georgia State University College of Law "Medical-legal partnerships unite the medical and legal professions in a common goal and create the ideal team to serve the healthcare and legal needs of vulnerable populations including children, cancer patients, senior citizens, and HIV/AIDS patients. Not only do they provide critical direct services to patients, they also promote systemic advocacy efforts that have an enormously positive impact on healthcare policies and practices. Poverty, Health and Law is an important guide that could not have been published at a more vital time." -- Steven B. Scudder, J.D., Committee Counsel, ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service
Book Synopsis Poorly Understood by : Mark Robert Rank
Download or read book Poorly Understood written by Mark Robert Rank and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2021 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Work hard to get ahead; the poor are mostly minorities in inner cities living lazily off of welfare fraud; the government spends more on welfare than anywhere else in the world; America is a land of equal opportunity with easy social mobility for all. These are but a handful of the many myths about poverty in America, some of which have persisted for decades, with significant and harmful consequences on our social policy, our social compacts, and ourselves.Poorly Understood seeks to challenge and debunk these myths, along the way asking tough questions about how and why they have persisted and what it would take to replace them with true stories.
Download or read book The Health Gap written by Michael Marmot and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2015-09-10 with total page 426 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Punchily written ... He leaves the reader with a sense of the gross injustice of a world where health outcomes are so unevenly distributed' Times Literary Supplement 'Splendid and necessary' Henry Marsh, author of Do No Harm, New Statesman There are dramatic differences in health between countries and within countries. But this is not a simple matter of rich and poor. A poor man in Glasgow is rich compared to the average Indian, but the Glaswegian's life expectancy is 8 years shorter. The Indian is dying of infectious disease linked to his poverty; the Glaswegian of violent death, suicide, heart disease linked to a rich country's version of disadvantage. In all countries, people at relative social disadvantage suffer health disadvantage, dramatically so. Within countries, the higher the social status of individuals the better is their health. These health inequalities defy usual explanations. Conventional approaches to improving health have emphasised access to technical solutions – improved medical care, sanitation, and control of disease vectors; or behaviours – smoking, drinking – obesity, linked to diabetes, heart disease and cancer. These approaches only go so far. Creating the conditions for people to lead flourishing lives, and thus empowering individuals and communities, is key to reduction of health inequalities. In addition to the scale of material success, your position in the social hierarchy also directly affects your health, the higher you are on the social scale, the longer you will live and the better your health will be. As people change rank, so their health risk changes. What makes these health inequalities unjust is that evidence from round the world shows we know what to do to make them smaller. This new evidence is compelling. It has the potential to change radically the way we think about health, and indeed society.
Book Synopsis The American Health Care Paradox by : Elizabeth Bradley
Download or read book The American Health Care Paradox written by Elizabeth Bradley and published by Public Affairs. This book was released on 2013-11-05 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Considers why U.S. society is believed to be less healthy in spite of disproportionate spending on health care, identifying a lack of social services, outdated care allocations, and a resistance to government programs as the problem.
Book Synopsis Policies to Address Poverty in America by : Melissa Kearney
Download or read book Policies to Address Poverty in America written by Melissa Kearney and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2014-06-19 with total page 508 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One-in-seven adults and one-in-five children in the United States live in poverty. Individuals and families living in povertyÊnot only lack basic, material necessities, but they are also disproportionally afflicted by many social and economic challenges. Some of these challenges include the increased possibility of an unstable home situation, inadequate education opportunities at all levels, and a high chance of crime and victimization. Given this growing social, economic, and political concern, The Hamilton Project at Brookings asked academic experts to develop policy proposals confronting the various challenges of AmericaÕs poorest citizens, and to introduce innovative approaches to addressing poverty.ÊWhen combined, the scope and impact of these proposals has the potential to vastly improve the lives of the poor. The resulting 14 policy memos are included in The Hamilton ProjectÕs Policies to Address Poverty in America. The main areas of focus include promoting early childhood development, supporting disadvantaged youth, building worker skills, and improving safety net and work support.
Book Synopsis Rural Poverty in the United States by : Ann R. Tickamyer
Download or read book Rural Poverty in the United States written by Ann R. Tickamyer and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2017-08-22 with total page 456 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: America's rural areas have always held a disproportionate share of the nation's poorest populations. Rural Poverty in the United States examines why. What is it about the geography, demography, and history of rural communities that keeps them poor? In a comprehensive analysis that extends from the Civil War to the present, Rural Poverty in the United States looks at access to human and social capital; food security; healthcare and the environment; homelessness; gender roles and relations; racial inequalities; and immigration trends to isolate the underlying causes of persistent rural poverty. Contributors to this volume incorporate approaches from multiple disciplines, including sociology, economics, demography, race and gender studies, public health, education, criminal justice, social welfare, and other social science fields. They take a hard look at current and past programs to alleviate rural poverty and use their failures to suggest alternatives that could improve the well-being of rural Americans for years to come. These essays work hard to define rural poverty's specific metrics and markers, a critical step for building better policy and practice. Considering gender, race, and immigration, the book appreciates the overlooked structural and institutional dimensions of ongoing rural poverty and its larger social consequences.
Book Synopsis Health Disparities in the United States by : Donald A. Barr
Download or read book Health Disparities in the United States written by Donald A. Barr and published by Johns Hopkins University Press. This book was released on 2019-08-20 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Challenging students to think critically about the complex web of social forces that leads to health disparities in the United States. The health care system in the United States has been called the best in the world. Yet wide disparities persist between social groups, and many Americans suffer from poorer health than people in other developed countries. In this revised edition of Health Disparities in the United States, Donald A. Barr provides extensive new data about the ways low socioeconomic status, race, and ethnicity interact to create and perpetuate these health disparities. Examining the significance of this gulf for the medical community and society at large, Barr offers potential policy- and physician-based solutions for reducing health inequity in the long term. This thoroughly updated edition focuses on a new challenge the United States last experienced more than half a century ago: successive years of declining life expectancy. Barr addresses the causes of this decline, including what are commonly referred to as "deaths of despair"—from opiate overdose or suicide. Exploring the growing role geography plays in health disparities, Barr asks why people living in rural areas suffer the greatest increases in these deaths. He also analyzes recent changes under the Affordable Care Act and considers the literature on how race and ethnicity affect the way health care providers evaluate and treat patients. As both a physician and a sociologist, Barr is uniquely positioned to offer rigorous medical explanations alongside sociological analysis. An essential text for courses in public health, health policy, and sociology, this compelling book is a vital teaching tool and a comprehensive reference for social science and medical professionals.
Book Synopsis Health and Poverty by : Michael J Holosko
Download or read book Health and Poverty written by Michael J Holosko and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-12-12 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Unequal social and health care policies in the United States continue to keep the poor disempowered in situations that not only limit their access to health care services, but also the quality of care they receive. An overview of health policies in the U.S., Health and Poverty examines where gaps in social and health care policies exist at the federal, state, and municipal levels; the impact of economic recessions on health care; and how our health policies are inextricably linked with political agendas, economic priorities, and social and cultural values. In an attempt to bridge issues of health, such as health care and administration costs, with issues of social and health policy related to poverty in America, this important book explores the need to make fundamental change to the structure of the medical and health care system. It contends that the incremental modifications our government has taken have not changed regional and economic disparity, granted equal access to services or equal quality of care, or eliminated discrimination. Providing the political and economic context for understanding health care policy issues and concerns related to the poor, Health and Poverty discusses: services and programs that achieve more humane outcomes why our cultural values present the greatest challenge toward developing competent, accessible, and affordable health care for all U.S. residents barriers to health care for the homeless population with HIV patient dumping how many African-American infants and children lack access to primary care physicians or services how the U.S. focuses on who receives medical care, rather than on how medical care is delivered and received trends in states’Medicaid programs the impact of poor working conditions on the physical and emotional health of low-income minority populations As Health and Poverty demonstrates, universal health care can only become a reality in the U.S. when reform proposals that divide the public into the “deserving” and the “undeserving” are rejected. Health care is not a privilege, reserved for the middle class and the wealthy. It is a basic human right. Social workers, policymakers, health care educators and providers, and public administrators need to read this book to find out how that right can be guaranteed to all Americans and why current legislation and health care reform proposals are inadequate for meeting the health care needs of countless men, women, and children.
Book Synopsis Making Americans Healthier by : Robert F. Schoeni
Download or read book Making Americans Healthier written by Robert F. Schoeni and published by Russell Sage Foundation. This book was released on 2008-01-25 with total page 413 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The United States spends billions of dollars annually on social and economic policies aimed at improving the lives of its citizens, but the health consequences associated with these policies are rarely considered. In Making Americans Healthier, a group of multidisciplinary experts shows how social and economic policies seemingly unrelated to medical well-being have dramatic consequences for the health of the American people. Most previous research concerning problems with health and healthcare in the United States has focused narrowly on issues of medical care and insurance coverage, but Making Americans Healthier demonstrates the important health consequences that policymakers overlook in traditional cost-benefit evaluations of social policy. The contributors examine six critical policy areas: civil rights, education, income support, employment, welfare, and neighborhood and housing. Among the important findings in this book, David Cutler and Adriana Lleras-Muney document the robust relationship between educational attainment and health, and estimate that the health benefits of education may exceed even the well-documented financial returns of education. Pamela Herd, James House, and Robert Schoeni discover notable health benefits associated with the Supplemental Security Income Program, which provides financial support for elderly and disabled Americans. George Kaplan, Nalini Ranjit, and Sarah Burgard document a large and unanticipated improvement in the health of African-American women following the enactment of civil rights legislation in the 1960s. Making Americans Healthier presents ground-breaking evidence that the health impact of many social policies is substantial. The important findings in this book pave the way for promising new avenues for intervention and convincingly demonstrate that ultimately social and economic policy is health policy. A Volume in the National Poverty Center Series on Poverty and Public Policy
Book Synopsis The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century by : Institute of Medicine
Download or read book The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2003-02-01 with total page 536 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The anthrax incidents following the 9/11 terrorist attacks put the spotlight on the nation's public health agencies, placing it under an unprecedented scrutiny that added new dimensions to the complex issues considered in this report. The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century reaffirms the vision of Healthy People 2010, and outlines a systems approach to assuring the nation's health in practice, research, and policy. This approach focuses on joining the unique resources and perspectives of diverse sectors and entities and challenges these groups to work in a concerted, strategic way to promote and protect the public's health. Focusing on diverse partnerships as the framework for public health, the book discusses: The need for a shift from an individual to a population-based approach in practice, research, policy, and community engagement. The status of the governmental public health infrastructure and what needs to be improved, including its interface with the health care delivery system. The roles nongovernment actors, such as academia, business, local communities and the media can play in creating a healthy nation. Providing an accessible analysis, this book will be important to public health policy-makers and practitioners, business and community leaders, health advocates, educators and journalists.
Author :National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Publisher :National Academies Press ISBN 13 :030946921X Total Pages :161 pages Book Rating :4.3/5 (94 download)
Book Synopsis Health-Care Utilization as a Proxy in Disability Determination by : National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Download or read book Health-Care Utilization as a Proxy in Disability Determination written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2018-04-02 with total page 161 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Social Security Administration (SSA) administers two programs that provide benefits based on disability: the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. This report analyzes health care utilizations as they relate to impairment severity and SSA's definition of disability. Health Care Utilization as a Proxy in Disability Determination identifies types of utilizations that might be good proxies for "listing-level" severity; that is, what represents an impairment, or combination of impairments, that are severe enough to prevent a person from doing any gainful activity, regardless of age, education, or work experience.
Book Synopsis Health, Economic Development and Household Poverty by : Sara Bennett
Download or read book Health, Economic Development and Household Poverty written by Sara Bennett and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2007-09-12 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Accessible and edited by authors based at a top institution, this book provides readers with an excellent summary in an easy-to-read style of this burgeoning field of research. In this volume Bennett, Gilson and Mills have gathered together essays written by academics and experts in the fields of health policy and economic development, each underscoring the need for political commitment to meet the needs of the poor and the development of strategies to build this commitment, covering: evidence regarding the links between health, economic development and household poverty evidence on the extent to which health care systems address the needs of the poor and the near poor innovative measures to make health care interventions widely available to the poor. Current and topical, this book is of great relevance to policy makers and practitioners in the field of international health and development and researchers engaged with global health and poverty as well as being ideal reading for students of international health and development.
Book Synopsis Broke in America by : Joanne Samuel Goldblum
Download or read book Broke in America written by Joanne Samuel Goldblum and published by BenBella Books. This book was released on 2021-02-02 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: FOREWORD INDIES FINALIST — POLITICAL & SOCIAL SCIENCES NAUTILUS BOOK AWARDS SILVER MEDALIST — SOCIAL CHANGE & SOCIAL JUSTICE ERIC HOFFER BOOK AWARD 1ST RUNNER UP — CULTURE & MONTAIGNE MEDAL NOMINEE "A valuable resource in the fight against poverty." —Publishers Weekly "An exploration of why so many Americans are struggling financially . . . A down-to-earth overview of the causes and effects of poverty and possible remedies." —Kirkus Reviews Water. Food. Housing. The most basic and crucial needs for survival, yet 40 percent of people in the United States don't have the resources to get them. With key policy changes, we could eradicate poverty in this country within our lifetime—but we need to get started now. Nearly 40 million people in the United States live below the poverty line—about $26,200 for a family of four. Low-income families and individuals are everywhere, from cities to rural communities. While poverty is commonly seen as a personal failure, or a deficiency of character or knowledge, it's actually the result of bad policy. Public policy has purposefully erected barriers that deny access to basic needs, creating a society where people can easily become trapped—not because we lack the resources to lift them out, but because we are actively choosing not to. Poverty is close to inevitable for low-wage workers and their children, and a large percentage of these people, despite qualifying for it, do not receive government aid. From Joanne Samuel Goldblum and Colleen Shaddox, Broke in America offers an eye-opening and galvanizing look at life in poverty in this country: how circumstances and public policy conspire to keep people poor, and the concrete steps we can take to end poverty for good. In clear, accessible prose, Goldblum and Shaddox detail the ways the current system is broken and how it's failing so many of us. They also highlight outdated and ineffective policies that are causing or contributing to this unnecessary problem. Every chapter features action items readers can use to combat poverty—both nationwide and in our local communities, including the most effective public policies you can support and how to work hand-in-hand with representatives to affect change. So far, our attempted solutions have fallen short because they try to "fix" poor people rather than address the underlying problems. Fortunately, it's much easier to fix policy than people. Essential and timely, Broke in America offers a crucial road map for securing a brighter future.