— Heidi Sfiligoj, News Staff The Social Work Policy Institute, a new entity in the NASW Foundation, is launching Oct. 1 and will serve as a think tank and repository for evidence on what works in social work practice. The institute will pull together researchers and thinkers to develop papers and briefs and have policy briefings on Capitol Hill on critical issues. Joan Levy Zlotnik, who was staff director of NASW's Family Commission and Government Relations Associate at the NASW National Office from 1987 to 1994 and most recently served as the executive director of the Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research, will be the...

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— Heidi Sfiligoj, News Staff Decisions reached The U.S. Supreme Court this summer reached a decision in the Safford Unified School District No. 1 v. Redding case, which galvanized national attention. The Court ruled 8-1 that the strip search of a 13-year-old student violated the constitutional protection against unreasonable search and seizure. School officials subjected Savana Redding, now 19, to a search of her bra and underwear after receiving an uncorroborated tip from another student that she may have an unauthorized ibuprofen in her possession. No drugs were found. While the court held that the strip search violated the Fourth ...

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Michael Petit, president of Every Child Matters: “We’re not closing the gap. Obama has launched it in the right direction, however.” NASW is cosponsoring the second annual Step Up for Kids Week, Oct. 5-9. The event, sponsored by the Every Child Matters Education Fund, brings thousands of people together across the United States to raise public awareness of the needs of children and families. NASW is participating in a Washington, D.C., rally that will include speeches from leaders of organizations that advocate for children and families. Speakers will address the priority areas of health insurance for all children; redu...

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— Heidi Sfiligoj, News Staff NASW, along with its New York State and New York City chapters, filed a motion and an amicus brief before the New York Supreme Court in the case Debra H. v. Janice R. The brief supports petitioner-respondent Debra H.'s standing to obtain a hearing to determine whether she should be awarded custody and visitation of M.R., and also her motion for leave to appeal. M.R. is the child Janice gave birth to at least one year after she and Debra moved in together, and to whom Debra provided critical emotional, physical and financial support. NASW and its New York State and New York City chapters first filed an ap...

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NASW's regular members soon should begin to receive e-mail invitations to participate in the 2009 NASW Salary Survey. Tracy Whitaker, director of the NASW Center for Workforce Studies and Social Work Practice, said the effort will mark the first time a survey has focused exclusively on social work compensation. "This survey will help us build upon previous social work workforce research," she noted. The salary survey will examine a variety of factors regarding compensation data, including region, areas of practice and years of experience. Results of the study will help guide workforce efforts in the future, Whitaker said. "The results wi...

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NASW has new social work practice updates available. The first update focuses on ways to avoid a Medicare claim denial due to unreported changes to a group or solo practice. According to the update, "Medicare-Mandated Reportable Changes for Clinical Social Worker in Solo or Group Practice," clinical social workers are required to report to Medicare the following changes using Form CMS-8551: practice location change, any changes to business name or change in taxpayer identification number with the Internal Revenue Service; any decision to close, retire, or sell or to withdraw from Medicare; any change in the business structure of the practi...

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NASW participated in an advisory council meeting for the National Patient Navigator Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. The event, cosponsored by the American Cancer Society, pulled together cancer research advocates, representatives from government-funded patient navigation programs, pharmaceutical funders and educators to discuss ways to improve the patient navigation process. The unique quality of this patient navigation meeting was the fact that all medical conditions — not just cancer — were considered, said Karyn Walsh, senior practice adviser at NASW. Walsh attended the meeting and represented social work in patient nav...

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NASW member W. June Simmons, CEO of the Partners in Care Foundation, has been appointed to the National Advisory Council on Aging. The council is among several national research advisory councils reporting to the director of the National Institutes of Health concerning pertinent programs. "As a social worker, I am honored to represent the field — especially during these challenging times — on this very important advisory council," Simmons said in a statement. A major responsibility for the council is to review and make recommendations regarding grant applications to support biomedical research and research training activities. ...

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— Heidi Sfiligoj, News Staff NASW's Massachusetts Chapter has surveyed social workers in its state to provide members with information about social work salaries, employment levels and working conditions. "This survey demonstrates that social service agencies in Massachusetts face ongoing challenges in providing sufficient employment opportunities, remuneration, and support for their professional social work staff," the study states. "The findings highlight the challenges faced by those entering social work practice, those approaching or moving beyond the traditional retirement age, as well as those from a variety of other professiona...

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NASW is partnering with the Income-Based Repayment program to help spread the news about a new way to reduce student loan repayments. The IBR became available July 1, providing much-needed financial relief for hundreds of thousands of federal student loan borrowers, said NASW lobbyist Nancy McFall Jean. According to the Project on Student Debt, a nonprofit organization that works to make higher education more available and affordable, the IBR program also includes more money for Pell Grants and lower interest rates for some student loans. "In this tough economic climate, Income-Based Repayment will be a godsend for so many people, helping ...

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