truthout--2020-08-30--Deep Cuts to Florida’s Public Health System Made the State Vulnerable to COVID

Jacksonville , Florida — On a sweltering July morning , Rose Wilson struggled to breathe as she sat in her bed , the light from her computer illuminating her face and the oxygen tubes in her nose .
Wilson , a retiree who worked as a public health department nurse supervisor in Duval County for 35 years , had just been diagnosed with COVID-19-induced pneumonia .
She had a telemedicine appointment with her doctor .
Staring back from her screen was Dr. Rogers Cain , who runs a tidy little family medical clinic a couple of blocks from the Trout @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Black area where the coronavirus is running roughshod .
Wilson , 81 , was one of Cain ’ s patients who ’ d tested positive — he had seven other COVID patients that morning before noon .
Three of her grown children had contracted the virus , too .
“ It started as a drip , drip , drip in May , ” said Cain , his voice muffled by his mask .
“ Now it ’ s more like a faucet running.
” Cain and Wilson are nervous .
Over the past @ @ @ @ @ @ @ county health department was gutted of money and people , hampering Duval ’ s ability to respond to outbreaks , including a small cluster of tuberculosis cases in 2012 .
And now they face the menace of COVID-19 in a city once slated to host this week ’ s Republican National Convention , in one of the states leading the latest U.S. surge .
Florida is both a microcosm and a cautionary tale for America .
As the nation starved the public health system intended to protect communities against disease , staffing and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sunshine State , leaving it especially unprepared for the worst health crisis in a century .
Although Florida ’ s population grew by 2.4 million since 2010 to make it the nation ’ s third-most-populous state , a joint investigation by KHN and The Associated Press has found , the state slashed its local health departments ’ staffing — from 12,422 full-time equivalent workers to 9,125 in 2019 , the latest data available .
According to an analysis of state data , the state-run local health departments spent 41 % less per resident @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from $ 57 to $ 34 after adjusting for inflation .
Departments nationwide have also cut spending , but by less than half as much ― an average of 18 % , according to data from the National Association of County and City Health Officials .
Even before the pandemic hit , that meant fewer investigators to track , trace and contain diseases such as hepatitis .
It meant fewer public health nurses to teach people how to protect themselves from HIV/AIDS or the flu .
When the wave of COVID-19 inundated Florida @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it mattered most , its main lines of defense eviscerated .
Now , confirmed cases have soared past 588,000 and deaths have risen to more than 10,000 .
Concerns over the virus prompted Republicans to cancel plans for an in-person convention in Jacksonville , opting for a pared-down version in North Carolina .
Health experts blame the funding cuts on the Great Recession and choices by a series of governors who wanted to move publicly funded state services to for-profit companies .
And when the pandemic took hold , they say , residents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wearing masks from Republican Gov .
Ron DeSantis and other political leaders .
Voices within the health departments were muzzled .
“ The reality , unfortunately , is people are going to die because of the irresponsibility of the decisions being made by the people crafting the budgets , ” said Ron Bialek , president of the Public Health Foundation , a nonprofit in Washington , D.C. , offering tools and training .
“ Public health can ’ t help us get out of this situation without our elected officials giving us the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , repeated questions from KHN and The Associated Press about changes in public health funding , nor made staffers available for deeper explanations .
Dr. Leslie Beitsch , a former deputy secretary of Florida ’ s state health department , said failing to prepare for a foreseeable disaster “ is governmental malpractice.
” The nation ’ s pandemic response is only as good as the weakest link , he said .
Since the virus respects no borders , other states feel the ripples of Florida ’ s failings .
Those failings are clear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the equivalent of 852 full-time workers and spent $ 91 per person in 2008 but in 2019 had only 422 workers and spent just $ 34 per resident , according to the KHN-AP analysis of state data .
That ’ s less than the typical list price of a single COVID test .
Former county health director Dr. Jeff Goldhagen said the county ’ s team has been “ dismantled to the extent that it could not really manage an outbreak.
” Yet it must .
Cain ’ s private north Jacksonville medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID cases and eight deaths .
“ We are all on fire right now , ” he said .
“ You have to have a fire department that is adequately equipped to put out the fire .
” Florida faced similar shortcomings around the time of the last great pandemic , the 1918 flu .
Back then , according to a 1924 state report , public health workers faced too many demands and their efforts were “ to some extent scattered and transitory.
” The state could have used at least three more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : “ It is a source of regret and a matter of grave concern to public health workers that the funds available are not sufficient.
” County-based health departments began in 1930 , providing more robust services closer to home .
About 50 years later , legislation created state-administered primary care programs in which county health departments provided low-income Floridians with the type of basic health care and treatment most people now get at private doctors ’ offices .
The 1990s saw a move toward privatization , particularly as Medicaid managed care took @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Florida Public Health Review .
Still , per-person spending on local public health rose until the late 1990s , when adjusted for inflation to 2019 dollars , peaking at $ 59 .
Wilson , the retired public health nurse stricken with COVID-19 , recalled how Duval County ’ s department started feeling the financial pain during former Republican Gov .
Jeb Bush ’ s administration in the early 2000s and kept losing nurses and other staff until they were “ very , very short.
” Beitsch , who worked for the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the downward trend continued under former Republican governors Charlie Crist and Rick Scott , fueled by a growing belief in shrinking government that flourished in many states .
Florida ’ s leaders exerted more control over public health , Beitsch said , and “ the amount of local autonomy has been diminishing with successive administrations.
” The recession that began in late 2007 sparked public health reductions across the nation that were especially harsh in Florida .
By 2011 , budget cuts and lack of money were the most frequently cited challenges in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which pointed to growing needs .
In the following years , the state had some of the nation ’ s highest rates of heart disease and diabetes .
Squeezed departments struggled and sometimes stumbled .
A report from the state health department ’ s inspector general for the 2018-19 fiscal year , for example , found a series of lost and inconsistent shipments of lab specimens from county health departments to the state lab — not long before the pandemic would make labs more important than ever .
As governor , Scott presided @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , when funding and staffing dropped most .
Now a U.S. senator , he said through a spokesperson that he was unapologetic for health department cuts , which he characterized as a move toward “ making government more efficient ” without endangering public health .
“ I ’ m sure that he had no problem with the cuts that were being made , ” said Patrick Bernet , an associate professor in health administration at Florida Atlantic University .
“ To put it all on him is not fair because a bunch of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vote that way .
… We keep voting in people who undervalue public health.
” Democratic state Sen. Janet Cruz , a legislator who has represented the Tampa region for a dozen years and sat on health care committees , said she watched lawmakers systematically cut money for health departments .
When she questioned it , she said , some colleagues claimed the need wasn ’ t as great because the state was moving toward private family health care centers .
“ Public health in Florida has been wholly underfunded , ” she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than others .
Departments serving at least half a million residents spent $ 29 per person in 2019 on average , compared with $ 90 per person in departments serving 50,000 or fewer — a difference starker than the typical gap between larger and smaller departments nationally , according to an KHN-AP analysis .
Experts can ’ t say exactly why the gap is wider in Florida , which has a state-run system , but point to politics and historical decisions about budgets .
Duval County ’ s health department spending was the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down 63 % since 2008 .
Typically , about 22 workers , or 5 % of the total staff , have been dedicated to preparing for and tracking disease outbreaks .
But when the pandemic hit , many there and elsewhere were diverted to fight the coronavirus , leaving little time for their typical duties such as mosquito abatement and tracking sexually transmitted infections such as syphilis .
“ Current events demonstrate how bad a decision ” the deep cuts to public health were , said Dr. Marissa Levine , a professor of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ University of South Florida .
“ It ’ s really come back to haunt us.
” The pandemic caught fire in Florida this summer as the state ’ s rapid reopening allowed people to flock to beaches , Disney World , movie theaters and bars .
The state has had more than half a million confirmed cases ― among them , players and workers for baseball ’ s Miami Marlins ― and 35,000 hospitalizations , yet DeSantis still hasn ’ t issued a mask mandate .
Some local governments have .
Jacksonville adopted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a week later Republican Mayor Lenny Curry announced he and his family were self-quarantining because he ’ d been exposed to someone who tested positive for the virus .
Chad Neilsen , director of infection prevention at the University of Florida-Jacksonville , lauded the mayor for the mask requirement , saying , “ We know that masking works.
” But he pointed out that other counties have different rules and that the inconsistent messaging breeds confusion .
St. Johns County began requiring masks in late July but only in county facilities .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mask numerous times , including at an Aug. 13 coronavirus update briefing during which some other speakers wore them .
“ One voice is so critical during a pandemic , ” said Dr. Jonathan Kantor , a Jacksonville epidemiologist and dermatologist .
“ We have to have one voice , and consistent leadership that is modeling behavior if we want to get people to change their behaviors.
” Instead , experts in Florida said , public health workers have been silenced or told by top state officials what to say .
For example @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state leaders told school boards they needed health department approval to keep schools closed , then instructed health directors not to give it .
“ All the communication is directed by the state , and localities are very limited in what they can do , ” said Levine , the University of South Florida professor .
“ Anything to do with a mandate , there ’ s resistance to do at a state level .
This includes the hot debate on masks .
The locals have to extend the state messaging.
” Local @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : ‘ Shut up , ’ ” Bernet said .
“ They literally can not speak.
” Beitsch , who now chairs the department of behavioral sciences and social medicine at Florida State University , said such limitations ― and similar mixed messages and silencing of medical experts at the national level ― fuels the politicization of public health and undermining of science .
“ People think they should be listening to politicians and state legislative leaders about their health care .
They ’ re not listening to health experts and the epidemiologists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mask and if you just wash your hands , we can really , really reduce the spread of the virus , ” said Cruz , the state senator .
“ People are confused , and they think this is a hoax and it ’ s nothing more than the flu.
” Meanwhile , the COVID caseload continues to rise , surpassing 25,000 in Duval County , with minorities stricken disproportionately , as elsewhere in the nation .
In a county that ’ s 29 % Black and 60 % white , Black residents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than double the rate of white residents .
Rates are also high for Floridians grouped together as “ other , ” including Native American , Asian and multiracial residents .
Duval County ’ s overall caseload is rising so fast that Goldhagen , the former health department director , said the agency has given up on contact tracing , which means trying to curb the virus by identifying and warning people who have been exposed .
“ It ’ s impossible , ” Goldhagen said .
“ Dismantling the system was a complete @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the citizens of Florida.
” With an unequipped public health system , Wilson , the retired public health nurse , said it falls to everyone to lead Jacksonville , and Florida , out of the coronavirus crisis .
“ My hope is that everybody begins to take this virus seriously , and wear their mask and stay social distancing .
It can work if we do that , ” said Wilson , whose condition has improved .
“ So , that ’ s my hope .
Eventually there will be a vaccine that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then , it ’ s up to us to help do that .
And if we ’ re not serious about it , then we ’ re doomed.
” This story is a collaboration between KHN and The Associated Press .
Spending and staffing data for Florida ’ s local health departments is from the Florida Department of Health .
Florida Atlantic University professor Patrick Bernet provided additional state data on staffing by program area .
KHN-AP adjusted spending data for inflation using the Bureau of Economic Analysis ’ state and local government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the Florida Department of Health .
KHN-AP calculated rates per 10,000 people using data on race , regardless of ethnicity , from the U.S. Census Bureau ’ s 2018 American Community Survey .
Statewide COVID-19 cases per day are from Johns Hopkins University .

Jacksonville, Florida — On a sweltering July morning, Rose Wilson struggled to breathe as she sat in her bed, the light from her computer illuminating her face and the oxygen tubes in her nose.
Wilson, a retiree who worked as a public health department nurse supervisor in Duval County for 35 years, had just been diagnosed with COVID-19-induced pneumonia. She had a telemedicine appointment with her doctor.
Staring back from her screen was Dr. Rogers Cain, who runs a tidy little family medical clinic a couple of blocks from the Trout River in north Jacksonville, a predominantly Black area where the coronavirus is running roughshod. Wilson, 81, was one of Cain’s patients who’d tested positive — he had seven other COVID patients that morning before noon. Three of her grown children had contracted the virus, too.
“It started as a drip, drip, drip in May,” said Cain, his voice muffled by his mask. “Now it’s more like a faucet running.”
Cain and Wilson are nervous. Over the past two decades, both watched as the county health department was gutted of money and people, hampering Duval’s ability to respond to outbreaks, including a small cluster of tuberculosis cases in 2012. And now they face the menace of COVID-19 in a city once slated to host this week’s Republican National Convention, in one of the states leading the latest U.S. surge.
Florida is both a microcosm and a cautionary tale for America. As the nation starved the public health system intended to protect communities against disease, staffing and funding fell faster and further in the Sunshine State, leaving it especially unprepared for the worst health crisis in a century.
Although Florida’s population grew by 2.4 million since 2010 to make it the nation’s third-most-populous state, a joint investigation by KHN and The Associated Press has found, the state slashed its local health departments’ staffing — from 12,422 full-time equivalent workers to 9,125 in 2019, the latest data available.
According to an analysis of state data, the state-run local health departments spent 41% less per resident in 2019 than in 2010, dropping from $57 to $34 after adjusting for inflation. Departments nationwide have also cut spending, but by less than half as much ― an average of 18%, according to data from the National Association of County and City Health Officials.
Even before the pandemic hit, that meant fewer investigators to track, trace and contain diseases such as hepatitis. It meant fewer public health nurses to teach people how to protect themselves from HIV/AIDS or the flu. When the wave of COVID-19 inundated Florida, the state was caught flat-footed when it mattered most, its main lines of defense eviscerated.
Now, confirmed cases have soared past 588,000 and deaths have risen to more than 10,000. Concerns over the virus prompted Republicans to cancel plans for an in-person convention in Jacksonville, opting for a pared-down version in North Carolina.
Health experts blame the funding cuts on the Great Recession and choices by a series of governors who wanted to move publicly funded state services to for-profit companies.
And when the pandemic took hold, they say, residents got mixed messages about prevention strategies like wearing masks from Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and other political leaders. Voices within the health departments were muzzled.
“The reality, unfortunately, is people are going to die because of the irresponsibility of the decisions being made by the people crafting the budgets,” said Ron Bialek, president of the Public Health Foundation, a nonprofit in Washington, D.C., offering tools and training. “Public health can’t help us get out of this situation without our elected officials giving us the resources.”
State officials neither answered specific, repeated questions from KHN and The Associated Press about changes in public health funding, nor made staffers available for deeper explanations.
Dr. Leslie Beitsch, a former deputy secretary of Florida’s state health department, said failing to prepare for a foreseeable disaster “is governmental malpractice.” The nation’s pandemic response is only as good as the weakest link, he said. Since the virus respects no borders, other states feel the ripples of Florida’s failings.
Those failings are clear in Duval County, which had employed the equivalent of 852 full-time workers and spent $91 per person in 2008 but in 2019 had only 422 workers and spent just $34 per resident, according to the KHN-AP analysis of state data. That’s less than the typical list price of a single COVID test. Former county health director Dr. Jeff Goldhagen said the county’s team has been “dismantled to the extent that it could not really manage an outbreak.”
Yet it must.
Cain’s private north Jacksonville medical clinic alone has had about 60 confirmed COVID cases and eight deaths. “We are all on fire right now,” he said. “You have to have a fire department that is adequately equipped to put out the fire. ”
Dwindling Budgets
Florida faced similar shortcomings around the time of the last great pandemic, the 1918 flu. Back then, according to a 1924 state report, public health workers faced too many demands and their efforts were “to some extent scattered and transitory.” The state could have used at least three more district health officers, the report said: “It is a source of regret and a matter of grave concern to public health workers that the funds available are not sufficient.”
County-based health departments began in 1930, providing more robust services closer to home. About 50 years later, legislation created state-administered primary care programs in which county health departments provided low-income Floridians with the type of basic health care and treatment most people now get at private doctors’ offices.
The 1990s saw a move toward privatization, particularly as Medicaid managed care took hold, said a 2004 paper in the Florida Public Health Review. Still, per-person spending on local public health rose until the late 1990s, when adjusted for inflation to 2019 dollars, peaking at $59.
Wilson, the retired public health nurse stricken with COVID-19, recalled how Duval County’s department started feeling the financial pain during former Republican Gov. Jeb Bush’s administration in the early 2000s and kept losing nurses and other staff until they were “very, very short.”
Beitsch, who worked for the state health department in the 1990s, said the downward trend continued under former Republican governors Charlie Crist and Rick Scott, fueled by a growing belief in shrinking government that flourished in many states. Florida’s leaders exerted more control over public health, Beitsch said, and “the amount of local autonomy has been diminishing with successive administrations.”
The recession that began in late 2007 sparked public health reductions across the nation that were especially harsh in Florida. By 2011, budget cuts and lack of money were the most frequently cited challenges in a Florida public health workforce survey, which pointed to growing needs. In the following years, the state had some of the nation’s highest rates of heart disease and diabetes.
Squeezed departments struggled and sometimes stumbled. A report from the state health department’s inspector general for the 2018-19 fiscal year, for example, found a series of lost and inconsistent shipments of lab specimens from county health departments to the state lab — not long before the pandemic would make labs more important than ever.
As governor, Scott presided over the state from 2011 to 2019, when funding and staffing dropped most. Now a U.S. senator, he said through a spokesperson that he was unapologetic for health department cuts, which he characterized as a move toward “making government more efficient” without endangering public health.
“I’m sure that he had no problem with the cuts that were being made,” said Patrick Bernet, an associate professor in health administration at Florida Atlantic University. “To put it all on him is not fair because a bunch of little henchmen from the counties had to vote that way. … We keep voting in people who undervalue public health.”
Democratic state Sen. Janet Cruz, a legislator who has represented the Tampa region for a dozen years and sat on health care committees, said she watched lawmakers systematically cut money for health departments. When she questioned it, she said, some colleagues claimed the need wasn’t as great because the state was moving toward private family health care centers. “Public health in Florida has been wholly underfunded,” she said.
Some places have suffered more than others. Departments serving at least half a million residents spent $29 per person in 2019 on average, compared with $90 per person in departments serving 50,000 or fewer — a difference starker than the typical gap between larger and smaller departments nationally, according to an KHN-AP analysis. Experts can’t say exactly why the gap is wider in Florida, which has a state-run system, but point to politics and historical decisions about budgets.
Duval County’s health department spending was the equivalent of $34 per person, down 63% since 2008. Typically, about 22 workers, or 5% of the total staff, have been dedicated to preparing for and tracking disease outbreaks.
But when the pandemic hit, many there and elsewhere were diverted to fight the coronavirus, leaving little time for their typical duties such as mosquito abatement and tracking sexually transmitted infections such as syphilis.
“Current events demonstrate how bad a decision” the deep cuts to public health were, said Dr. Marissa Levine, a professor of public health and family medicine at the University of South Florida. “It’s really come back to haunt us.”
Mixed and Muzzled Messages
The pandemic caught fire in Florida this summer as the state’s rapid reopening allowed people to flock to beaches, Disney World, movie theaters and bars.
The state has had more than half a million confirmed cases ― among them, players and workers for baseball’s Miami Marlins ― and 35,000 hospitalizations, yet DeSantis still hasn’t issued a mask mandate. Some local governments have. Jacksonville adopted one in late June, and about a week later Republican Mayor Lenny Curry announced he and his family were self-quarantining because he’d been exposed to someone who tested positive for the virus.
Chad Neilsen, director of infection prevention at the University of Florida-Jacksonville, lauded the mayor for the mask requirement, saying, “We know that masking works.” But he pointed out that other counties have different rules and that the inconsistent messaging breeds confusion.
St. Johns County began requiring masks in late July but only in county facilities. And DeSantis has appeared in public without a mask numerous times, including at an Aug. 13 coronavirus update briefing during which some other speakers wore them.
“One voice is so critical during a pandemic,” said Dr. Jonathan Kantor, a Jacksonville epidemiologist and dermatologist. “We have to have one voice, and consistent leadership that is modeling behavior if we want to get people to change their behaviors.”
Instead, experts in Florida said, public health workers have been silenced or told by top state officials what to say. For example, The Palm Beach Post reported that state leaders told school boards they needed health department approval to keep schools closed, then instructed health directors not to give it.
“All the communication is directed by the state, and localities are very limited in what they can do,” said Levine, the University of South Florida professor. “Anything to do with a mandate, there’s resistance to do at a state level. This includes the hot debate on masks. The locals have to extend the state messaging.” Local health officials “are being told bluntly: ‘Shut up,’” Bernet said. “They literally cannot speak.”
Beitsch, who now chairs the department of behavioral sciences and social medicine at Florida State University, said such limitations ― and similar mixed messages and silencing of medical experts at the national level ― fuels the politicization of public health and undermining of science.
“People think they should be listening to politicians and state legislative leaders about their health care. They’re not listening to health experts and the epidemiologists who say if you just wear a mask and if you just wash your hands, we can really, really reduce the spread of the virus,” said Cruz, the state senator. “People are confused, and they think this is a hoax and it’s nothing more than the flu.”
Meanwhile, the COVID caseload continues to rise, surpassing 25,000 in Duval County, with minorities stricken disproportionately, as elsewhere in the nation. In a county that’s 29% Black and 60% white, Black residents with COVID have been hospitalized at more than double the rate of white residents. Rates are also high for Floridians grouped together as “other,” including Native American, Asian and multiracial residents.
Duval County’s overall caseload is rising so fast that Goldhagen, the former health department director, said the agency has given up on contact tracing, which means trying to curb the virus by identifying and warning people who have been exposed.
“It’s impossible,” Goldhagen said. “Dismantling the system was a complete disregard for the health and well-being of the citizens of Florida.”
With an unequipped public health system, Wilson, the retired public health nurse, said it falls to everyone to lead Jacksonville, and Florida, out of the coronavirus crisis.
“My hope is that everybody begins to take this virus seriously, and wear their mask and stay social distancing. It can work if we do that,” said Wilson, whose condition has improved. “So, that’s my hope. Eventually there will be a vaccine that will curtail this virus. But until then, it’s up to us to help do that. And if we’re not serious about it, then we’re doomed.”
This story is a collaboration between KHN and The Associated Press.
Methodology
Spending and staffing data for Florida’s local health departments is from the Florida Department of Health. Florida Atlantic University professor Patrick Bernet provided additional state data on staffing by program area. KHN-AP adjusted spending data for inflation using the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ state and local government deflator.
COVID-19 data by race is from the Florida Department of Health. KHN-AP calculated rates per 10,000 people using data on race, regardless of ethnicity, from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2018 American Community Survey. Statewide COVID-19 cases per day are from Johns Hopkins University.
Subscribe to KHN’s free Morning Briefing.
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truthout--2020-08-30--Hundreds of Thousands of Primary Absentee Voters Must Reapply to Vote in Fall

On August 20 , the Wisconsin Elections Commission announced that they would send letters to 2.6 million voters who have not yet signed up to receive an absentee ballot for the fall election , reminding them about their voting options and urging them to apply for a mailed-out ballot online or use an enclosed form .
What the announcement did not say was that a half-million of the voters getting the mailing had applied , received , and voted with an absentee ballot in April 2020 ’ s presidential primary .
But unlike 800,000 other voters who this spring checked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an absentee ballot for the rest of 2020 ’ s elections , these half-million voters had only applied for a mailed-out ballot in the primary .
“ If a registered voter requested an absentee ballot for April but not for the rest of the year , he or she will receive a letter from the Wisconsin Elections Commission in early September explaining the options for voting this fall , ” Reid Magney , WEC public information officer , said in an email .
“ For April , there were 1.3 million absentee ballots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about 800,000 requests .
So approximately half a million… [ voters ] only requested a ballot for April.
” The WEC ’ s effort to contact millions of voters who never or rarely voted by mail before COVID-19 raises a big question for absentee voters in battleground states .
Are individuals who voted by mail earlier this year unaware that they may be required to reapply for an absentee ballot in the presidential election ?
“ It ’ s an example of little things that can matter a lot , ” said Phil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of state and board chair of the National Vote at Home Institute , referring to how voters filled out unfamiliar application forms months ago .
East of the Rockies , most states require voters to reapply for each election .
But that is not the case in some presidential swing states where voters can choose to receive an absentee ballot for the next election or for the rest of the year .
That choice can hinge on checking a box or signing a section on the state ’ s application , which many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pandemic postponed presidential primaries .
In August , Michigan also sent a letter to millions of voters who have not yet applied to receive an absentee ballot for the fall , or only applied for an absentee ballot for an election earlier this year .
Its mailing , too , reiterated the options to vote this fall , encouraged recipients to vote absentee and told them how to apply .
( Both Michigan and Wisconsin have new online portals and downloadable forms . )
Michigan ’ s Department of State did not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ might be in the same situation as the half-million Wisconsin voters : those who voted by mail in its April primary , but have to reapply to vote by mail this fall .
Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson , a Democrat , mailed absentee ballot applications to 7.7 million voters this May .
More than 1.6 million voters used the ballots in Michigan ’ s August ’ s primary , setting a state record , the Detroit Free Press noted .
But millions of Michigan voters have yet to apply for a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s office will mail the postcards to the 4.4 million active registered voters who have not already applied for an absentee ballot and are not already signed up to automatically receive an absentee ballot for every election , ” the paper said , noting that some of this year ’ s earlier absentee voters are not set up to do so for the fall .
Voting by mailed-out ballots is not the only way to vote in the presidential election .
In most states , voters can cast absentee ballots or vote in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ early or on Election Day .
But many states , including 2020 swing states , are making historic shifts to voting from home in response to the pandemic .
As Michigan ’ s and Wisconsin ’ s latest public education efforts attest , many voters apparently do not know that they need to reapply for an absentee ballot for the fall , especially if they filled out an application months ago and then voted by mail in the spring or summer .
“ The voter turnout groups can not count on people who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Kevin Kennedy , the former executive director of Wisconsin ’ s Government Accountability Board , the state election agency that preceded the Wisconsin Elections Commission .
“ They need to follow up.
” Most people who have never voted by mail may not realize that they must apply for an absentee ballot in their state , just as they have to register to vote .
The rules and specifics vary state by state .
“ If you applied for an absentee ballot in the spring , can you expect to get one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no , apply again , ” said Wendy Underhill , director of the National Conference of State Legislatures ’ elections and redistricting team , which tracks the latest state-by-state trends and changes in voting procedures .
“ It ’ s [ the burden ] on the voter to ask for that absentee ballot for each election in most states , ” she said .
“ There ’ s about 14 states that have online portals where you can ask for an absentee ballot .
And that makes your life easier .
And it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ official easier.
” Before the pandemic , most states east of the Rockies saw less than 10 percent of their voters cast mailed-out ballots .
Previously , these states envisioned mailing ballots to registered voters if they were in the military , overseas , disabled , ill or elderly , traveling for work , or on vacation .
Their laws and rules were based on the expectation that relatively small numbers of voters would apply for an absentee ballot when they needed it .
Some states created permanent lists for elderly and disabled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which allows voters to apply for an absentee ballot for every election in a two-year period .
The pandemic led many states to suspend or update these rules .
This fall , the District of Columbia and nine states will directly send registered voters an absentee ballot , skipping the application process altogether .
( The nine states are California , Oregon , Washington , Nevada , Utah , Colorado , Hawaii , New Jersey and Vermont . )
That development has been sharply attacked by President Trump .
But most states still @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In two-thirds of the states , voters can do so without citing an excuse .
A half-dozen states additionally require voters to declare an excuse ( illness , overseas , etc. )
.
Some battleground states will send their voters an application for the fall , while others , such as Ohio and Georgia , will not .
“ I would encourage people to just renew their ballot application , ” said Michael McDonald , a University of Florida professor who specializes in voter turnout and is writing a book about absentee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ general advice he would suggest when surveying the evolving fall landscape .
The best state and local government portals allow voters to check and update their registration information , to see if they signed up for an absentee ballot , and see the address where that ballot will be sent , said Hillary Hall , National Vote at Home Institute senior adviser for state and local elections .
What Should Voters Do ?
What states are doing to help people vote from home varies .
In Pennsylvania , another swing state , its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ signed up to receive an absentee ballot for all of 2020 , or just for the presidential election , to inform them about a new online ballot-tracking tool .
That email said , “ You do not need to re-apply for a mail-in ballot .
You will receive a ballot on the mail in September or October.
” While the state has a new portal for other voters to apply online for an absentee ballot for the fall , the department did not respond to an inquiry asking how many voters applied to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but not for the presidential election .
Campaign insiders creating voting apps said this ambiguity should be addressed .
“ There should be a campaign to say , ‘ Hey , voters in this state , we know there ’ s a chance that you could have signed up , [ and ] you may think you have signed up , but you haven ’ t yet .
Go do it , ’ ” said Alex Niemczewski , CEO of BallotReady , a startup whose voter information apps are being used by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a campaign , but it is not in our wheelhouse to do this , ” she said , explaining that BallotReady can not reliably check whether a voter has signed up to vote by mail because the relevant state and local government databases are in constant flux as data is being processed , sometimes delayed and transferred .
That leaves it up to voters to figure out what to do , or political parties or advocacy groups to help them .
As the mailings in Wisconsin and Michigan show , there may be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with mailed-out ballots earlier this year .
But that doesn ’ t mean they are set to receive an absentee ballot this fall .

This article was produced by Voting Booth, a project of the Independent Media Institute.
On August 20, the Wisconsin Elections Commission announced that they would send letters to 2.6 million voters who have not yet signed up to receive an absentee ballot for the fall election, reminding them about their voting options and urging them to apply for a mailed-out ballot online or use an enclosed form.
What the announcement did not say was that a half-million of the voters getting the mailing had applied, received, and voted with an absentee ballot in April 2020’s presidential primary. But unlike 800,000 other voters who this spring checked a box on an application to receive an absentee ballot for the rest of 2020’s elections, these half-million voters had only applied for a mailed-out ballot in the primary.
“If a registered voter requested an absentee ballot for April but not for the rest of the year, he or she will receive a letter from the Wisconsin Elections Commission in early September explaining the options for voting this fall,” Reid Magney, WEC public information officer, said in an email. “For April, there were 1.3 million absentee ballots requested. For November, we have about 800,000 requests. So approximately half a million… [voters] only requested a ballot for April.”
The WEC’s effort to contact millions of voters who never or rarely voted by mail before COVID-19 raises a big question for absentee voters in battleground states. Are individuals who voted by mail earlier this year unaware that they may be required to reapply for an absentee ballot in the presidential election?
“It’s an example of little things that can matter a lot,” said Phil Keisling, Oregon’s former secretary of state and board chair of the National Vote at Home Institute, referring to how voters filled out unfamiliar application forms months ago.
East of the Rockies, most states require voters to reapply for each election. But that is not the case in some presidential swing states where voters can choose to receive an absentee ballot for the next election or for the rest of the year. That choice can hinge on checking a box or signing a section on the state’s application, which many voters did in haste this spring as the pandemic postponed presidential primaries.
In August, Michigan also sent a letter to millions of voters who have not yet applied to receive an absentee ballot for the fall, or only applied for an absentee ballot for an election earlier this year. Its mailing, too, reiterated the options to vote this fall, encouraged recipients to vote absentee and told them how to apply. (Both Michigan and Wisconsin have new online portals and downloadable forms.)
Michigan’s Department of State did not provide figures when asked how many voters might be in the same situation as the half-million Wisconsin voters: those who voted by mail in its April primary, but have to reapply to vote by mail this fall.
Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, mailed absentee ballot applications to 7.7 million voters this May. More than 1.6 million voters used the ballots in Michigan’s August’s primary, setting a state record, the Detroit Free Press noted. But millions of Michigan voters have yet to apply for a fall absentee ballot.
“Benson’s office will mail the postcards to the 4.4 million active registered voters who have not already applied for an absentee ballot and are not already signed up to automatically receive an absentee ballot for every election,” the paper said, noting that some of this year’s earlier absentee voters are not set up to do so for the fall.
Voting by mailed-out ballots is not the only way to vote in the presidential election. In most states, voters can cast absentee ballots or vote in person at a polling place, either early or on Election Day. But many states, including 2020 swing states, are making historic shifts to voting from home in response to the pandemic.
As Michigan’s and Wisconsin’s latest public education efforts attest, many voters apparently do not know that they need to reapply for an absentee ballot for the fall, especially if they filled out an application months ago and then voted by mail in the spring or summer.
“The voter turnout groups cannot count on people who might get a ballot automatically,” said Kevin Kennedy, the former executive director of Wisconsin’s Government Accountability Board, the state election agency that preceded the Wisconsin Elections Commission. “They need to follow up.”
An Overlooked Requirement?
Most people who have never voted by mail may not realize that they must apply for an absentee ballot in their state, just as they have to register to vote. The rules and specifics vary state by state.
“If you applied for an absentee ballot in the spring, can you expect to get one in the fall? The answer is no, apply again,” said Wendy Underhill, director of the National Conference of State Legislatures’ elections and redistricting team, which tracks the latest state-by-state trends and changes in voting procedures.
“It’s [the burden] on the voter to ask for that absentee ballot for each election in most states,” she said. “There’s about 14 states that have online portals where you can ask for an absentee ballot. And that makes your life easier. And it really makes the life of the election official easier.”
Before the pandemic, most states east of the Rockies saw less than 10 percent of their voters cast mailed-out ballots. Previously, these states envisioned mailing ballots to registered voters if they were in the military, overseas, disabled, ill or elderly, traveling for work, or on vacation. Their laws and rules were based on the expectation that relatively small numbers of voters would apply for an absentee ballot when they needed it. Some states created permanent lists for elderly and disabled voters. One exception was Florida, which allows voters to apply for an absentee ballot for every election in a two-year period.
The pandemic led many states to suspend or update these rules. This fall, the District of Columbia and nine states will directly send registered voters an absentee ballot, skipping the application process altogether. (The nine states are California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Hawaii, New Jersey and Vermont.) That development has been sharply attacked by President Trump.
But most states still require voters to apply to vote absentee. In two-thirds of the states, voters can do so without citing an excuse. A half-dozen states additionally require voters to declare an excuse (illness, overseas, etc.). Some battleground states will send their voters an application for the fall, while others, such as Ohio and Georgia, will not.
“I would encourage people to just renew their ballot application,” said Michael McDonald, a University of Florida professor who specializes in voter turnout and is writing a book about absentee voting in 2020, when asked what general advice he would suggest when surveying the evolving fall landscape.
The best state and local government portals allow voters to check and update their registration information, to see if they signed up for an absentee ballot, and see the address where that ballot will be sent, said Hillary Hall, National Vote at Home Institute senior adviser for state and local elections.
What Should Voters Do?
What states are doing to help people vote from home varies. In Pennsylvania, another swing state, its Department of State recently emailed voters who signed up to receive an absentee ballot for all of 2020, or just for the presidential election, to inform them about a new online ballot-tracking tool.
That email said, “You do not need to re-apply for a mail-in ballot. You will receive a ballot on the mail in September or October.” While the state has a new portal for other voters to apply online for an absentee ballot for the fall, the department did not respond to an inquiry asking how many voters applied to vote by mail in its June primary but not for the presidential election.
Campaign insiders creating voting apps said this ambiguity should be addressed.
“There should be a campaign to say, ‘Hey, voters in this state, we know there’s a chance that you could have signed up, [and] you may think you have signed up, but you haven’t yet. Go do it,’” said Alex Niemczewski, CEO of BallotReady, a startup whose voter information apps are being used by the Democratic Party.
“There should be a campaign, but it is not in our wheelhouse to do this,” she said, explaining that BallotReady cannot reliably check whether a voter has signed up to vote by mail because the relevant state and local government databases are in constant flux as data is being processed, sometimes delayed and transferred.
That leaves it up to voters to figure out what to do, or political parties or advocacy groups to help them. As the mailings in Wisconsin and Michigan show, there may be hundreds of thousands of voters who voted with mailed-out ballots earlier this year. But that doesn’t mean they are set to receive an absentee ballot this fall.


truthout--2020-08-30--COVID-19 Could Set Back Women’s Economic Progress for Decades

Nothing in recent decades has shown the extent to which our care industry is underfunded and undervalued quite like the coronavirus pandemic .
In the midst of a public health crisis when the life-saving and sustaining work of health care , elder care and child care is most needed , it is out of reach for many .
Accessing adequate care services is , to put it simply , often a matter of life and death .
The first hard truth about care work is that although it lies at the center of every social and economic structure our society @ @ @ @ @ @ @ raising our children , preparing the next generation of workers — it is pushed to the margins .
In the last year , federal and many state budgets have proposed steep cuts to child care specifically and the social safety net more generally , just as these care services are in more demand than ever .
National child care costs have skyrocketed while availability of openings has plummeted .
We are on the cusp of a severe long-term care crisis for aging generations .
And we are experiencing a shortage of care workers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ supported in their work .
Nonetheless , when family members need care , people must navigate these brutal constraints to find it .
And if they find it is too expensive or simply unavailable — as plenty do — many will still go to great lengths to provide it .
Here lies the second hard truth about care work : much of it is performed as unrecognized and unpaid labor , invisible to formal structures of employment .
It is performed in the early mornings and late evenings , caring for their elderly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disabilities , and over the weekends and after school , caring for young children .
It is also disproportionately performed by women — to the tune of a lost $ 1.5 trillion in wages in the U.S. annually .
Renowned feminist scholar Silvia Federici , who helped organize the “ Wages for Housework ” campaign that saw women homemakers protesting for pay in the 1970s , has argued for decades that unpaid care work lays the foundation of gendered economic inequality .
“ As women , we know that the working day for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” she writes in her seminal work , Revolution at Point Zero : Housework , Reproduction , and Feminist Struggle : Federici ’ s work illustrates how the second truth about care work makes way for the first : Patriarchal gender roles place greater care work expectations upon women , and this feminization enables the work to be systemically undervalued and exploited .
This dismissal pushes care work , even in its waged forms , to the margins of our government ’ s policy and pocketbook priorities .
Why fund something that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
All of this was true before the onset of COVID-19 .
Add a public health emergency and economic crisis into the mix and these inequities have only become more entrenched .
Without an immediate injection of relief funds , half of existing child care centers might shutter their doors , slashing 4.5 million available slots in centers for kids .
Ninety-three percent of child care workers are women , with almost half being women of color , according to data from the U.S. Labor Department .
Women will be impacted negatively both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care industry , because when the doors are shuttered and children remain at home and not in child care facilities , we know who that care work typically falls on .
Women are still struggling to recover economically from COVID-19 , and there are no signs this will happen anytime soon .
They are the majority of those who lost jobs since February , and have not returned to pre-COVID employment levels , according to a July economic report from the Institute for Women ’ s Policy Research .
The report also showed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are still a quarter below their pre-COVID levels .
As more facilities close across the country and families are forced to take on full-time child care responsibilities while continuing to work , this labor is falling disproportionately on women .
Fall is approaching and it remains unlikely that school systems will remove some of the burden of child care , and some advocates are predicting serious consequences for women ’ s paid employment and workforce gender equity .
The reverberations could be felt for decades .
Director of Women ’ s Rights at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ worked to integrate gender analysis into labor struggles for decades .
For her , the fight for better recognition of care work in labor policies is not a new one — but what is new is the pandemic .
“ There ’ s no way around it — this crisis has hit women ’ s labor force participation hard and it ’ s only going to get worse in the fall .
I fear we will be losing a generation of women from the workforce , ” she told Truthout .
She pointed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to build short-term resilience plans , these will not last through the end of the year for many .
“ While many families could muddle through the spring and summer , juggling remote work or reducing hours , taking unpaid or paid leave , it ’ s not sustainable .
We are stressed , exhausted and at the end of our rope .
By the time September comes , it will be six months — a half a year — that families have been home with their kids .
Something has to give.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to understand what the long-term , macroeconomic implications for women might be .
“ We know from research that women are more likely to reduce hours or leave work in order to care for kids or others .
The outcome of this is reduced incomes and lifetime earnings for women and a widened gender wage gap , poor mental health outcomes for those who continue to try and juggle paid work and remote learning , reduced household spending which will slow the economy overall and have significant consequences for small businesses and communities.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the way coronavirus has already magnified and entrenched race- and class-based inequities .
For working-class and low-income women burdened with additional child care labor at home in the fall , paying for child care is often an unthinkable expense .
“ For those who have little choice but to keep working outside the home in order to support their family , we have the potential for increased infection rates , ” Smallman says , “ and since so many folks working in essential services or low-wage , precarious jobs are racialized , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see more infections and higher COVID-19 death rates among marginalized people.
” One state has started looking at the economic impact of coronavirus on single working mothers .
Khara Jabola-Carolus , the executive director of the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women and the organizer behind the first explicitly feminist economic recovery plan in the country , is driving this research .
“ Eighty-nine percent [ of single mothers ] reported that their ability to perform paid work has been compromised by caregiving responsibilities during the crisis , ” she told @ @ @ @ @ @ @ moms surveyed in Hawaii reported that they have lost financial independence during the crisis.
” The loss of financial independence has gendered repercussions as well ; findings have shown job loss among women is associated with greater likelihood of experiencing domestic abuse .
Previous economic recessions have seen stark increases in intimate-partner violence and abusive behavior among men .
As Jabola-Carolus warned , “ Job loss for women can also lead to a loss of bodily integrity and agency.
” This job loss could trigger economic consequences decades from now .
“ One @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reduced access to social protection systems , many of which rely on contributions — if you don ’ t pay into unemployment insurance or public pensions , you don ’ t have access when you need it , ” Smallman said .
“ This means deepened poverty for those who are already most vulnerable — elderly women , precarious workers , informal workers , sex workers and domestic workers , often also people with multiple and intersecting identities.
” In other words , the consequences for economic devastation are extremely gendered , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ development of a vaccine .
Both Smallman and Jabola-Carolus say that with a magnifying glass on “ essential ” work right now , there is real opportunity for shifting attitudes and policies .
“ I will say that I ’ m certainly hearing a lot more about child care now from leadership across labor movements and that is encouraging , ” Smallman said .
“ Leaders from unions representing workers in all sectors have talked about the reality that there can be no recovery without child care.
” “ Even if women ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , if we can organize women who are being naturally radicalized by the crisis , then we can better prevent long-term consequences by shaping funding , programming and economic reconstruction , ” said Jabola-Carolus .
“ We need to build a completely new , centralized and free child care system .
We need a suite of policies that explicitly aim to transition society away from total dependency on waged work and force a redistribution of care.
” Progressives and feminists have long pushed for a universal , free and accessible child care system @ @ @ @ @ @ @ economic equity .
Due to coronavirus highlighting the essential nature of care work , we are even starting to see reflective shifts in mainstream policy platforms .
On July 21 , Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden announced an economic plan to invest in care for small children , older adults and family members with disabilities as part of his broad economic recovery proposals .
Josephine Kalipeni , policy director at Caring Across Generations , has long been at the forefront of care work activism .
“ For the first time in modern history @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has announced a $ 775 billion plan to rebuild our nation ’ s caregiving economy that addresses some of the most urgent paid and unpaid caregiving crises families are facing at this moment.
” Kalipeni noted , though , that more sweeping policy solutions are necessary to truly make child care accessible and affordable for all .
“ The proposal is light on funding details and doesn ’ t account for the oncoming elder boom and other demographic shifts that will greatly increase caregiving needs in the next decade .
The plan doesn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need long-term support services , but lack the financial resources to weather a long-term health crisis and don ’ t qualify for Medicare and make too much to qualify for Medicaid.
” These kinds of policy changes will continue to be advocated for by activists , who know that Biden ’ s plan , though significant in its scope , must still be strengthened .
“ Women have mobilized and struggled for decades , and progress toward economic justice has been painfully slow .
Now the hard-fought gains we ’ ve made are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ feminists sounding the alarm , the response from political leaders has been little more than shrugged shoulders , ” Smallman said .
“ It ’ s not too late to turn this around , but it will take considerable political will and leadership .
It ’ s up to all of us to create the conditions to make this change in political will possible , to demand better of our decision-makers .
”

Part of the Series Despair and Disparity: The Uneven Burdens of COVID-19
Nothing in recent decades has shown the extent to which our care industry is underfunded and undervalued quite like the coronavirus pandemic. In the midst of a public health crisis when the life-saving and sustaining work of health care, elder care and child care is most needed, it is out of reach for many. Accessing adequate care services is, to put it simply, often a matter of life and death.
The first hard truth about care work is that although it lies at the center of every social and economic structure our society depends on — maintaining our health, raising our children, preparing the next generation of workers — it is pushed to the margins. In the last year, federal and many state budgets have proposed steep cuts to child care specifically and the social safety net more generally, just as these care services are in more demand than ever. National child care costs have skyrocketed while availability of openings has plummeted. We are on the cusp of a severe long-term care crisis for aging generations. And we are experiencing a shortage of care workers, who are chronically underpaid and under supported in their work.
Nonetheless, when family members need care, people must navigate these brutal constraints to find it. And if they find it is too expensive or simply unavailable — as plenty do — many will still go to great lengths to provide it.
Here lies the second hard truth about care work: much of it is performed as unrecognized and unpaid labor, invisible to formal structures of employment. It is performed in the early mornings and late evenings, caring for their elderly parents, grandparents or family living with disabilities, and over the weekends and after school, caring for young children. It is also disproportionately performed by women — to the tune of a lost $1.5 trillion in wages in the U.S. annually.
Renowned feminist scholar Silvia Federici, who helped organize the “Wages for Housework” campaign that saw women homemakers protesting for pay in the 1970s, has argued for decades that unpaid care work lays the foundation of gendered economic inequality. “As women, we know that the working day for capital does not necessarily produce a paycheck,” she writes in her seminal work, Revolution at Point Zero: Housework, Reproduction, and Feminist Struggle:
Housework is much more than house cleaning … it is taking care of our children — the future workers — assisting them from birth through their school years, ensuring that they too perform in the ways expected of them under capitalism. This means that behind every factory, behind every school, behind every office or mine there is the hidden work of millions of women who have consumed their life, their labor, producing the labor power that works in those factories, schools, offices, or mines.
Federici’s work illustrates how the second truth about care work makes way for the first: Patriarchal gender roles place greater care work expectations upon women, and this feminization enables the work to be systemically undervalued and exploited. This dismissal pushes care work, even in its waged forms, to the margins of our government’s policy and pocketbook priorities. Why fund something that you expect women to provide for free?
All of this was true before the onset of COVID-19. Add a public health emergency and economic crisis into the mix and these inequities have only become more entrenched. Without an immediate injection of relief funds, half of existing child care centers might shutter their doors, slashing 4.5 million available slots in centers for kids. Ninety-three percent of child care workers are women, with almost half being women of color, according to data from the U.S. Labor Department. Women will be impacted negatively both as employees and patrons of the child care industry, because when the doors are shuttered and children remain at home and not in child care facilities, we know who that care work typically falls on.
Accessing adequate care services is, to put it simply, often a matter of life and death.
Women are still struggling to recover economically from COVID-19, and there are no signs this will happen anytime soon. They are the majority of those who lost jobs since February, and have not returned to pre-COVID employment levels, according to a July economic report from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research. The report also showed that employment levels in child care services are still a quarter below their pre-COVID levels. As more facilities close across the country and families are forced to take on full-time child care responsibilities while continuing to work, this labor is falling disproportionately on women. Fall is approaching and it remains unlikely that school systems will remove some of the burden of child care, and some advocates are predicting serious consequences for women’s paid employment and workforce gender equity. The reverberations could be felt for decades.
Director of Women’s Rights at the Canadian Labour Congress Vicky Smallman has worked to integrate gender analysis into labor struggles for decades. For her, the fight for better recognition of care work in labor policies is not a new one — but what is new is the pandemic. “There’s no way around it — this crisis has hit women’s labor force participation hard and it’s only going to get worse in the fall. I fear we will be losing a generation of women from the workforce,” she told Truthout. She pointed out that although many families were able to build short-term resilience plans, these will not last through the end of the year for many. “While many families could muddle through the spring and summer, juggling remote work or reducing hours, taking unpaid or paid leave, it’s not sustainable. We are stressed, exhausted and at the end of our rope. By the time September comes, it will be six months — a half a year — that families have been home with their kids. Something has to give.”
Smallman says we are just beginning to understand what the long-term, macroeconomic implications for women might be. “We know from research that women are more likely to reduce hours or leave work in order to care for kids or others. The outcome of this is reduced incomes and lifetime earnings for women and a widened gender wage gap, poor mental health outcomes for those who continue to try and juggle paid work and remote learning, reduced household spending which will slow the economy overall and have significant consequences for small businesses and communities.”
These realities only add another layer to the way coronavirus has already magnified and entrenched race- and class-based inequities. For working-class and low-income women burdened with additional child care labor at home in the fall, paying for child care is often an unthinkable expense. “For those who have little choice but to keep working outside the home in order to support their family, we have the potential for increased infection rates,” Smallman says, “and since so many folks working in essential services or low-wage, precarious jobs are racialized, this means that we will continue to see more infections and higher COVID-19 death rates among marginalized people.”
Women will be impacted negatively both as employees and patrons of the child care industry.
One state has started looking at the economic impact of coronavirus on single working mothers. Khara Jabola-Carolus, the executive director of the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women and the organizer behind the first explicitly feminist economic recovery plan in the country, is driving this research. “Eighty-nine percent [of single mothers] reported that their ability to perform paid work has been compromised by caregiving responsibilities during the crisis,” she told Truthout. “Ninety-two percent of single moms surveyed in Hawaii reported that they have lost financial independence during the crisis.” The loss of financial independence has gendered repercussions as well; findings have shown job loss among women is associated with greater likelihood of experiencing domestic abuse. Previous economic recessions have seen stark increases in intimate-partner violence and abusive behavior among men. As Jabola-Carolus warned, “Job loss for women can also lead to a loss of bodily integrity and agency.”
This job loss could trigger economic consequences decades from now. “One consequence of lost labor force attachment is reduced access to social protection systems, many of which rely on contributions — if you don’t pay into unemployment insurance or public pensions, you don’t have access when you need it,” Smallman said. “This means deepened poverty for those who are already most vulnerable — elderly women, precarious workers, informal workers, sex workers and domestic workers, often also people with multiple and intersecting identities.” In other words, the consequences for economic devastation are extremely gendered, and may well last well beyond the potential development of a vaccine.
Both Smallman and Jabola-Carolus say that with a magnifying glass on “essential” work right now, there is real opportunity for shifting attitudes and policies. “I will say that I’m certainly hearing a lot more about child care now from leadership across labor movements and that is encouraging,” Smallman said. “Leaders from unions representing workers in all sectors have talked about the reality that there can be no recovery without child care.”
“Even if women’s material conditions worsen in the short-term, if we can organize women who are being naturally radicalized by the crisis, then we can better prevent long-term consequences by shaping funding, programming and economic reconstruction,” said Jabola-Carolus. “We need to build a completely new, centralized and free child care system. We need a suite of policies that explicitly aim to transition society away from total dependency on waged work and force a redistribution of care.”
Progressives and feminists have long pushed for a universal, free and accessible child care system as a matter of gender justice and economic equity. Due to coronavirus highlighting the essential nature of care work, we are even starting to see reflective shifts in mainstream policy platforms. On July 21, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden announced an economic plan to invest in care for small children, older adults and family members with disabilities as part of his broad economic recovery proposals.
Josephine Kalipeni, policy director at Caring Across Generations, has long been at the forefront of care work activism. “For the first time in modern history, a party’s presidential nominee has announced a $775 billion plan to rebuild our nation’s caregiving economy that addresses some of the most urgent paid and unpaid caregiving crises families are facing at this moment.” Kalipeni noted, though, that more sweeping policy solutions are necessary to truly make child care accessible and affordable for all. “The proposal is light on funding details and doesn’t account for the oncoming elder boom and other demographic shifts that will greatly increase caregiving needs in the next decade. The plan doesn’t cover middle class families who need long-term support services, but lack the financial resources to weather a long-term health crisis and don’t qualify for Medicare and make too much to qualify for Medicaid.” These kinds of policy changes will continue to be advocated for by activists, who know that Biden’s plan, though significant in its scope, must still be strengthened.
“Women have mobilized and struggled for decades, and progress toward economic justice has been painfully slow. Now the hard-fought gains we’ve made are being set back decades, and despite feminists sounding the alarm, the response from political leaders has been little more than shrugged shoulders,” Smallman said. “It’s not too late to turn this around, but it will take considerable political will and leadership. It’s up to all of us to create the conditions to make this change in political will possible, to demand better of our decision-makers.”
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truthout--2020-08-31--USPS Board Chairman Revealed as Director of McConnell, Trump-Linked Super PACs

The United States Postal Service ( USPS ) Board of Governors Chairman , Robert M. Duncan , is a director of the Mitch McConnell-allied Senate Leadership Fund Super PAC , as paperwork filed Monday confirmed .
The ties between Duncan and McConnell deepen concerns about the integrity of what will likely be an election largely conducted with mail-in ballots , which has also been complicated by issues with a Republican-led gutting of the USPS .
Duncan ’ s ties to the $ 130 million Senate Leadership Fund is just one of the chairman ’ s ties to prominent Republicans .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the Trump-nominated USPS board of governors have ties to the Trump administration .
The Postal Services ’ board of governors is tasked with overseeing the USPS and “ directs the exercise of the powers of the Postal Service , directs and controls its expenditures , reviews its practices , conducts long-range planning , approves officer compensation and sets policies on all postal matters , ” according to the USPS website .
However , many have expressed concerns recently about the integrity of those leading the USPS as Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ahead of the presidential election .
These cuts come after Trump ’ s continual attacks on the Postal Service and mail-in voting .
Due to these cuts , service has been delayed , mail sorting machines have been shut down and staff hours have been cut .
This has led to 20 states suing over the service overhauls , and DeJoy vowing to pause changes until after the election , though the dismantling of the mail sorting machines continued .
In his testimony to the House Oversight Committee last week , DeJoy claimed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the election .
And on Monday , the committee announced plans to subpoena DeJoy over documents it requested at the testimony but has yet to receive .
As postmaster general and a top GOP donor , DeJoy has faced the most public scrutiny over the USPS overhauls .
His actions have led prominent senators like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren to call for the USPS board of governors to ” reverse changes to postal service operations that have been put in place by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy ” in a letter dated August @ @ @ @ @ @ @ revelations about DeJoy ’ s potential conflict of interest because of his large ownership stake in a USPS contractor , as also information about individuals on the Postal Service ’ s board of governors and their ties to Trump came to light , leading Senator Warren to pen another letter on the 24th to the board asking for disclosure of federal financial forms that could inform the public of any conflicts of interest .
A review by CNBC found that five out of six of the board members have financial ties to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CNBC found Duncan is listed as a director of a Republican Super PAC called American Crossroads that ’ s supporting Trump in this election ; William Zollars appears to have made a deal with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin for a $ 700 million loan for a company which Zollars serves as an executive ; Donald Moak , before his confirmation on the board , was the co-founder of a company that hired Stefan Passatino for legal work before Passatino served in the Trump administration ; Roman Martinez was a representative of the estate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ party donor .
Both John Barger and Zollars ’ s companies received loans from the Paycheck Protection Program , which gave small business relief loans toward the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic .
Many of the businesses that received loans had ties to the Trump administration .
These ties aren ’ t necessarily hidden .
Duncan ’ s official biography on the USPS website says that “ he raised an unprecedented $ 428 million and grew the donor base to 1.8 million — more donors than at any time in RNC history ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity , a nonprofit that represents the interests of the coal industry , an industry which Trump is bolstering .
In addition , Duncan ’ s son , Robert M. Duncan Jr. , was nominated by Trump in 2017 to be the U.S. Attorney for Kentucky .
Though these connections aren ’ t necessarily damning individually , together , they paint a picture of a web of questionable intents .
As The New Yorker ’ s chief Washington correspondent , Jane Myer , tweeted : “ Anyone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ postal service is a rogue move needs to understand that Mike Duncan , Trump ’ s Postal Service Chairman is McConnell ’ s guy .
”

Chairman Robert Duncan is just one of the members of the board with deep ties to Republicans and Trump.
The United States Postal Service (USPS) Board of Governors Chairman, Robert M. Duncan, is a director of the Mitch McConnell-allied Senate Leadership Fund Super PAC, as paperwork filed Monday confirmed. The ties between Duncan and McConnell deepen concerns about the integrity of what will likely be an election largely conducted with mail-in ballots, which has also been complicated by issues with a Republican-led gutting of the USPS.
Duncan’s ties to the $130 million Senate Leadership Fund is just one of the chairman’s ties to prominent Republicans. Moreover, nearly all of the people on the Trump-nominated USPS board of governors have ties to the Trump administration.
The Postal Services’ board of governors is tasked with overseeing the USPS and “directs the exercise of the powers of the Postal Service, directs and controls its expenditures, reviews its practices, conducts long-range planning, approves officer compensation and sets policies on all postal matters,” according to the USPS website.
However, many have expressed concerns recently about the integrity of those leading the USPS as Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has made major cuts to service just months ahead of the presidential election. These cuts come after Trump’s continual attacks on the Postal Service and mail-in voting. Due to these cuts, service has been delayed, mail sorting machines have been shut down and staff hours have been cut. This has led to 20 states suing over the service overhauls, and DeJoy vowing to pause changes until after the election, though the dismantling of the mail sorting machines continued.
In his testimony to the House Oversight Committee last week, DeJoy claimed that the changes were not motivated by the election. And on Monday, the committee announced plans to subpoena DeJoy over documents it requested at the testimony but has yet to receive.
As postmaster general and a top GOP donor, DeJoy has faced the most public scrutiny over the USPS overhauls. His actions have led prominent senators like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren to call for the USPS board of governors to ”reverse changes to postal service operations that have been put in place by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy” in a letter dated August 17.
However, shortly after, revelations about DeJoy’s potential conflict of interest because of his large ownership stake in a USPS contractor, as also information about individuals on the Postal Service’s board of governors and their ties to Trump came to light, leading Senator Warren to pen another letter on the 24th to the board asking for disclosure of federal financial forms that could inform the public of any conflicts of interest.
A review by CNBC found that five out of six of the board members have financial ties to the Republican party and the Trump administration. CNBC found Duncan is listed as a director of a Republican Super PAC called American Crossroads that’s supporting Trump in this election; William Zollars appears to have made a deal with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin for a $700 million loan for a company which Zollars serves as an executive; Donald Moak, before his confirmation on the board, was the co-founder of a company that hired Stefan Passatino for legal work before Passatino served in the Trump administration; Roman Martinez was a representative of the estate of a wealthy investment banker and Republican party donor. Both John Barger and Zollars’s companies received loans from the Paycheck Protection Program, which gave small business relief loans toward the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Many of the businesses that received loans had ties to the Trump administration.
These ties aren’t necessarily hidden. Duncan’s official biography on the USPS website says that “he raised an unprecedented $428 million and grew the donor base to 1.8 million — more donors than at any time in RNC history” and was the president and CEO of the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, a nonprofit that represents the interests of the coal industry, an industry which Trump is bolstering. In addition, Duncan’s son, Robert M. Duncan Jr., was nominated by Trump in 2017 to be the U.S. Attorney for Kentucky.
Though these connections aren’t necessarily damning individually, together, they paint a picture of a web of questionable intents. As The New Yorker’s chief Washington correspondent, Jane Myer, tweeted: “Anyone thinking Trump’s assault on the postal service is a rogue move needs to understand that Mike Duncan, Trump’s Postal Service Chairman is McConnell’s guy.”
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
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truthout--2020-08-31--Republicans Praise “Citizen Soldiers” Waging Violence Against Protesters

Sen. Ron Johnson ( R-Wisconsin ) has appeared to endorse violence against protesters while appearing on CNN , saying that “ citizen soldiers ” are needed to quash anti-racist protests across the country .
His statement comes days after 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse was charged with murdering two Kenosha , Wisconsin , protesters and shooting a third .
Protests erupted in Kenosha about a week ago when Jacob Blake , a Black man , was shot in the back seven times by police officers as he was getting into his car and while three of his sons sat in the backseat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The way you stop the violence , the way you stop the rioting is you surge manpower and resources , citizen soldiers , National Guard , and you overwhelm the number of rioters so they can ’ t riot , ” Johnson said on Sunday in an interview with CNN ’ s Dana Bash .
Some Twitter users pointed out that Rittenhouse could be considered a citizen soldier , a participant in the attempts to violently stop protests .
This is another in a deluge of support from the right supporting Rittenhouse ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and promoting violence toward protesters .
Last week , Ann Coulter was forced to delete a tweet saying that she wanted Rittenhouse to be the president , and Fox News ’ s Tucker Carlson said that Rittenhouse ’ s hand was forced by protesters and that he “ had to maintain order when no one else would.
” Right-wing politicians and pundits have attempted to justify the murder and violence against protesters by claiming that the demonstrations were violent .
However , much of the violence at protests has been perpetrated by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has not explicitly praised Rittenhouse , he liked a thread on Twitter that said that “ Kyle Rittenhouse is a good example of why I decided to vote for Trump.
” Trump also tweeted on Sunday that he believes “ The only way you will stop the violence in the high crime Democrat run cities is through strength !
” Right-wing commentators flipped the script when it came to the death of a person who was shot and on Saturday in Portland , Oregon , presumed to be a Trump supporter .
Though @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him , the victim was a member of the far-right group Patriot Prayer , an extremist group that often infiltrates protests and escalates violence .
Patriot Prayer identified him as Aaron Danielson , and was apparently also known as Jay Bishop , according to the group .
While Trump tweeted “ Rest In Peace Jay !
” following Danielson ’ s death , he has not expressed sympathy toward the protesters who were killed in Kenosha — instead , he claimed that , after the arrival of the National Guard , it has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Though there have not been reports of further violence in Kenosha , the presence of federal agents at protests in the past months has only stirred up more unrest , with agents detaining seemingly random protesters off the street and placing them in unmarked vans .
The praise for Rittenhouse and denunciation of Danielson ’ s death has laid bare the sharp contrast between the murders the right will celebrate and those which they will condemn .
After two protesters were murdered , Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis appeared to place the blame @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after the death of Danielson , Trump has railed for days against Democratic Portland mayor Ted Wheeler for failing to prevent Danielson ’ s death .

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin) has appeared to endorse violence against protesters while appearing on CNN, saying that “citizen soldiers” are needed to quash anti-racist protests across the country. His statement comes days after 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse was charged with murdering two Kenosha, Wisconsin, protesters and shooting a third.
Protests erupted in Kenosha about a week ago when Jacob Blake, a Black man, was shot in the back seven times by police officers as he was getting into his car and while three of his sons sat in the backseat. Blake is now paralyzed.
“The way you stop the violence, the way you stop the rioting is you surge manpower and resources, citizen soldiers, National Guard, and you overwhelm the number of rioters so they can’t riot,” Johnson said on Sunday in an interview with CNN’s Dana Bash. Some Twitter users pointed out that Rittenhouse could be considered a citizen soldier, a participant in the attempts to violently stop protests.
This is another in a deluge of support from the right supporting Rittenhouse’s actions, encouraging white supremacist terrorists and promoting violence toward protesters. Last week, Ann Coulter was forced to delete a tweet saying that she wanted Rittenhouse to be the president, and Fox News’s Tucker Carlson said that Rittenhouse’s hand was forced by protesters and that he “had to maintain order when no one else would.”
Right-wing politicians and pundits have attempted to justify the murder and violence against protesters by claiming that the demonstrations were violent. However, much of the violence at protests has been perpetrated by the police themselves.
While President Donald Trump has not explicitly praised Rittenhouse, he liked a thread on Twitter that said that “Kyle Rittenhouse is a good example of why I decided to vote for Trump.” Trump also tweeted on Sunday that he believes “The only way you will stop the violence in the high crime Democrat run cities is through strength!”
Right-wing commentators flipped the script when it came to the death of a person who was shot and on Saturday in Portland, Oregon, presumed to be a Trump supporter. Though it’s still unclear who shot him, the victim was a member of the far-right group Patriot Prayer, an extremist group that often infiltrates protests and escalates violence. Patriot Prayer identified him as Aaron Danielson, and was apparently also known as Jay Bishop, according to the group.
While Trump tweeted “Rest In Peace Jay!” following Danielson’s death, he has not expressed sympathy toward the protesters who were killed in Kenosha — instead, he claimed that, after the arrival of the National Guard, it has been entirely peaceful in the city. Though there have not been reports of further violence in Kenosha, the presence of federal agents at protests in the past months has only stirred up more unrest, with agents detaining seemingly random protesters off the street and placing them in unmarked vans.
The praise for Rittenhouse and denunciation of Danielson’s death has laid bare the sharp contrast between the murders the right will celebrate and those which they will condemn. After two protesters were murdered, Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis appeared to place the blame on the victims themselves. Meanwhile, after the death of Danielson, Trump has railed for days against Democratic Portland mayor Ted Wheeler for failing to prevent Danielson’s death.
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
Copyright © Truthout. May not be reprinted without permission.