1. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning DOMESTIC POLICY Chapter Fifteen

2. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Learning Outcomes 1. Describe the policy-making process as it applies to American national government institutions. 2. Explain the principles underlying the American health care system and the issues facing that system. 3. Describe the environmental policies of the United States and the role of the Environmental Protection Agency in implementing these policies. 2

3. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Learning Outcomes 4. Analyze American energy policy, and discuss how it encourages energy independence. 5. Describe the national policies for ending poverty in the United States and alleviating the issues caused by economic downturns. 3

4. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Introduction  Domestic policy: all laws, government planning and government actions affecting daily life  Federal level  State level  Local level  Private sector 4

5. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning The Policymaking Process  Agenda building  Policy formulation  Policy adoption  Policy implementation  Policy evaluation 5

6. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning The Policy Process 6

7. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Health Care  Health care spending = almost 20% of total economy  Higher in U.S. than almost anywhere  Rising cost of health care  Changing demographics  Advanced technology  Government’s role (Medicare and Medicaid) 7

8. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Cost of Health Care in Economically Advanced Nations 8

9. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Life Expectancy in the United States 9

10. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Health Care  Medicare  Helps those ages 65+  Second-largest domestic spending program  Reimbursement caps  Medicaid  Helps “working poor”  Spending has exploded: 46 million enrollees  States pay part of cost  One in three Americans have government health coverage 10

11. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Health Care  The uninsured  Over 49 million Americans  Recession impact  Young people under age 25 most likely  Negative health consequences Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning 11

12. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Health Care  2010 Health Care Reform legislation  Combination of private insurance, public programs, and new state-based non-profit health exchanges  NOT national health insurance  Fines those without health insurance  New mandates for insurers 12

13. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Environmental Policy  Environmental movement  Conservation  Preservation  Cleaning up the air and water  National Environmental Policy Act (1969)  Curbing air pollution: Clean Air Act (1990)  Water pollution: Clean Water Act (1972) 13

14. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Environmental Policy  Endangered Species Act  Endangered Species Act strengthened in 1973  Powerful tool for ecology movement  Tennessee Valley Authority habitat  Shifting to incentives for landowners 14

15. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Environmental Policy  Sustainability  Balance between economic and social activities  Supported by most Americans  Executive orders  Global climate change  Kyoto Protocol (rejected by U.S. Senate)  Global warming debate 15

16. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Tragedy of the Commons 16

17. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Energy Policy  Energy policy: laws concerned with how much energy is needed and used  Energy and the environment  Energy policy entangled with environmental policy  EPA regulations  Domestic power production can be at odds with clean air standards 17

18. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Energy Policy  Nuclear power—an unpopular solution  Efficient energy source  Fear of nuclear accidents and spent fuel issues restrict nuclear power in U.S. 18

19. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning U.S. Energy Consumption by Economic Sector, 2010 19

20. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Sources of Electricity Generation 2011 20

21. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Energy Policy  Alternative approaches to energy crisis  Wind farms  Ocean waves  Geothermal energy Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning 21

22. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Poverty and Welfare  One solution: income transfers  The low-income population  16% of Americans in 2011  Increased by 6 million between 2009-2011  The antipoverty budget  $1 trillion in budget (one-third of expenditures)  Medicaid has biggest portion 22

23. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning The Official Number of Poor in the United States 23

24. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Poverty and Welfare  Basic welfare  Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)  Block grants  New burden on states  Welfare controversies  Some object to any welfare  But basic payments relatively low compared to other nations (2012 average = $700 monthly) 24

25. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Poverty and Welfare  Other forms of government assistance:  Supplemental Security Income (SSI)  Food stamps  Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)  Homelessness—still a problem  Number increasing  Estimates from 230,000 to 750,000 25

26. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning Immigration  Continued influx of immigrants  Minority groups will constitute “majority” by 2060  Advantages of immigration  Attempts at immigration reform  Issue during 2006 elections  Arizona state law: constitutional?  DREAM Act 26

27. Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning The Range of Federal Public Policies  Policies affecting colleges and universities:  Title IX  Veteran’s tuition benefits  Student loan programs  Other federal policies affecting daily life:  Housing  Agricultural industry  Labor unions  School improvement efforts  Building highways and bridges 27