Digest Of Education Statistics, 2016

A report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) that was issued in the past week provides a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field of education from prekindergarten through graduate school. The Digest contains data on a variety of topics, including the number of schools and colleges, teachers, enrollments, and graduates, in addition to educational attainment, finances, and federal funds for education, libraries, and international comparisons.

The report can be obtained at https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2017/2017094.pdf.

Women Need More Degrees Than Men To Obtain Similar Earnings

Although women have surpassed men in educational attainment, the wage gap persists. Women need one more degree than men in the same field in order to attain similar earnings, according to a new report from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.  Women on average earn just 81 cents for every dollar earned by a man. Even when comparing men and women who have equal educational attainment and work in the same occupation, women still earn only 92 cents for every dollar earned by men.

The report can be obtained at https://cew-7632.kxcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/Women_FR_Web.pdf.

Overconfident Students And Doubtful Prospective Employers

According to a study by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, college students may believe they’re ready to be employed, but there are significant differences between their perceptions and those of prospective employers. A high percentage of students indicated in almost every category they thought they were proficient, while employers disagreed.

More information can be obtained at http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/02/23/study-students-believe-they-are-prepared-workplace-employers-disagree.

Policy Roadmap For Individuals With Complex Care Needs

A report from the Bipartisan Policy Center draws from six previous reports to identify a roadmap of policy solutions that can begin to tackle the barriers to financing and delivering high-quality, person- and family-centered, coordinated health and social services and supports to individuals with complex care needs. In 2010, 37% of Medicare beneficiaries had four or more chronic conditions and they accounted for 90% of Medicare hospital readmissions in 2010. Medicare beneficiaries with four or more chronic conditions also comprised 74% of Medicare program spending in 2010.

The report can be obtained at https://bipartisanpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/BPC-Health-Policy-Roadmap-For-Individuals-With-Complex-Care-Needs.pdf.

Student Loans And Bankruptcy Filing

The February 21, 2018 issue of the Federal Register indicates that the U.S. Department of Education seeks to ensure that the congressional mandate to except student loans from bankruptcy discharge except in cases of undue hardship is appropriately implemented while also ensuring that borrowers for whom repayment of their student loans would be an undue hardship are not inadvertently discouraged from filing an adversary proceeding in their bankruptcy case. Accordingly, the Department is requesting public comment on factors to be considered. The deadline for responding is May 22, 2018.

The announcement can be obtained at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/02/21/2018-03537/request-for-information-on-evaluating-undue-hardship-claims-in-adversary-actions-seeking-student.

How Students Fare In The Labor Market After Graduate And Professional School

A new brief from the Urban Institute explores employment and earnings outcomes among advanced degree recipients. Examining these outcomes across degree, occupational, and demographic categories paints a nuanced picture of the payoffs of graduate and professional education.

The brief can be obtained at https://www.urban.org/research/publication/after-graduate-and-professional-school/view/full_report.

Comments Sought On Reauthorization Of The Higher Education Act

Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) are seeking comments and suggestions from education stakeholders for the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee to consider as they work to draft a reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.

Comments are due by February 23, 2018 and should be sent to:  HigherEducation2018@help.senate.gov.

CMS Office Of the Actuary Health Expenditure Projections 2017-2026

Projections from the CMS Office of the Actuary indicate that national health expenditure growth is expected to average 5.5% annually over 2017-2026. That growth is projected to be faster than projected growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 1.0%. As a result, the report projects the health share of GDP to rise from 17.9% in 2016 to 19.7% by 2026.

Projections can be obtained at https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHealthExpendData/NationalHealthAccountsProjected.html.

Health Sector Employment Growth In 2018

Health care added 20,000 new jobs in January 18, slightly less than the 2017 average of 24,000 new jobs per month. More than half of January growth was in hospitals, which added 12,700 jobs, double the 2017 monthly average of 6,000.

Additional information can be obtained at https://altarum.org/sites/default/files/uploaded-related-files/SHSS-Labor-Brief_February_2018_0.pdf.

Falling U.S. Life Expectancy

An article in the journal BMJ on February 7, 2018 discusses reasons why white American are dying at higher rates.

The article can be obtained at https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/96466/failing_health_of_the_united_states_1.pdf.

FY 2019 Trump Administration Budget Request Submitted

The Trump Administration submitted to Congress its budget request for fiscal year 2019. Among other components, it proposes reductions of hundreds of billions of dollars in reductions to Medicare and Medicaid over 10 years.

The request can be obtained at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/budget-fy2019.pdf.

Health Insurance Marketplaces Data Enrollment In 2018

Nearly 11.8 million individuals selected a 2018 health plan during open enrollment, based on new data from the National Academy for State Health Policy that includes all U.S. states. Plan selections in the 17 state-based marketplaces, including those that use the federal HealthCare.gov platform, rose by 0.19%, while selections in the 34 states that use the federally-facilitated marketplace fell by 5.3%.

Data can be obtained at https://nashp.org/state-health-insurance-marketplace-enrollment-2017-and-2018/.

Disconnected From Higher Education

Approximately 3 million American adults lack access to both online and physical institutes of higher education. A report from the Urban Institute examines the intersection of physical education deserts with online education deserts, where access to broadband needed for online education is limited. Although online education is not a perfect substitute for learning in a physical classroom, increasing access to online coursework is a common response to the issue of education deserts.

The report can be obtained at https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/96191/disconnected_from_higher_education_1.pdf