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Alternative Energy Sources
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Alternative Energy Sources
Pursuing alternative energy supplies is advisable for the auspicious economy. A common alternative energy supplies include; geothermal power, hydroelectric power, nuclear energy, solar power, water power and wind power. These energy supplies provide alternatives to fossil fuel that is scientifically proven environmentally disastrous. In particular, nuclear energy provides better and reliable services, which are renewable, compared to fossil fuels. This report provides a critical analysis on the nature of alternative energy supplies. The report will as well compare fossil fuel against alternative energy sources named earlier.
Recently, there have been constant debates on the eligibility of fossil fuel. Rahman (83) argues that, fossil fuels have been applied to provide energy solutions to 97 percent of vehicles, trains, airplanes and ships. In some countries, fossil fuels have been used to generate electricity for industries and home consumptions. Although fossil fuels have been reliable because of its portability than other energy supplies, it should be noted that the fuels have primarily been responsible for causing damage to the ozone layer and altering the weather pattern.
For this reason, alternative energy supplies named above provide clean, reliable and renewable energy supplies. Another added advantage with these sources of energy is that there is greater sustainability compared to fossil fuels. These energy supplies require minimal input, and they are arguably conservative. Fossil fuels are not renewable or rather their renewability takes much time. Alternatively, these energy sources provide conservation of the real energy and the total costs involved in the production. Further to this, these energy sources are generated in a concentrated environment (Szklo, 2514). In other words, small inputs are required to produce large outputs. Again, small volumes of experience in waste production as compared to fossil fuel. Waste from fossil fuels is environmentally unfriendly if not well maintained. In addition, investing in these sources of energy is relatively cheaper than fossil fuels.
Work Cited
Rahman, Saifur. “Alternative Energy Sources: The Quest for Sustainable Energy [book review].”
IEEE power and energy magazine 5.2 (2007): 82-83. Print.
Szklo, A, and R Schaeffer. “Alternative energy sources or integrated alternative energy systems?
Oil as a modern lance of Peleus for the energy transition.” Energy 31.14 (2006): 2513-2522. Print.
Alternative dispute resolution
Alternative dispute resolution
Name
Institution
In the past few decades, it is possible to take note of the rise in two distinct considerations to criminal justice. The approaches are inclusive of restorative justice initiatives and initiatives in support of private law enforcement. The approaches arise out of a number of ideological orientations that are either more responsive to crime control, or they might be exhibiting a movement towards addressing some of the psychological needs of perpetrators and victims of a crime. This paper looks into ideology of mediation, thereby discussing some of the provisions in this ideology when used in restorative justice, civil litigation as well as family law.
Even though some of the restorative justice programs are sometimes applicable to violent felonies, most of the restorative justice programs are practically limited to relatively minor offences such as minor assaults, theft and vandalism. On this note, it is vital to take note of the fact that victim-offender mediation is the most popular type of restorative justice used in the country. It exhibits a slight similarity to civil mediation, but the difference emanates from the fact that a civil law mediator assumes a neutral position in the facilitation process, and he or she is not in a position to pass judgment on whichever side.
It is possible to determine that the public system has not been able to provide adequate resolutions for some of the criminal activities related to intra-family violence. Many practitioners in the domestic violence field have come across scenarios that involve wife battery, or when a boyfriend commits violence against a victim. Mostly, the victims will not call the police since the police are highly likely to make an arrest. Since the victim might find it difficult to see their loved ones going to jail, or they might be afraid of testifying against the offender, they are likely to refuse to cooperate. Consequently, the inherent delay in the criminal justice system might give the couple time for reconciliation, thereby making prosecution difficult. For this reason, through the criminal mediation system, it would be possible for the mediator to assist the partners to resolve some of their issues.
Through some of the neighborhood justice centers existing in a number of states, which consist of community boards, it is possible to solve some of the civil cases existing in the states. Some of the cases that the community boards hear are inclusive of civil disputes such as landlord/tenant disputes, harassments, assaults, and noise, among other disputes. However, the main model in a private criminal law system involves large companies and victims. Despite this fact, the main aim of the privately run organizations is the mediation of criminal disputes between some of the members of the subject communities.
An example of the privately run organizations includes some of the community boards that exist in San Francisco. Instead of calling the police, a victim in the area could get into contact with the community boards, upon which the case developer will be able to interview the victim as well as the perpetrator. The mediators, also known as “neutrals,” will then listen to what both sides have to say, and by guiding the discussion, after which they will leave it for the parties to come up with a resolution. This is a consideration that occurs most of the time.
Bibliography
Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Dep’t of Justice, Intimate Partner Violence, 1993-2001 at 1 (2003). Retrieved from: <http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/ipv01.htm>
Chall, Leo P. Sociological Abstracts. San Diego, etc: Sociological Abstracts, (2003)
Engel, Martin. Collaborative Law: Mediation Ohne Mediator. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, (2010)
Florida State University Law Review. Tallahassee: Florida State University, College of Law, (1973).
Jill Richey Rayburn, Note: Neighborhood Justice Centers: Community Use of ADR — Does It Really Work? 26 U. Mem. L. Rev. 1197, 1200 (1996).
Legal Action: The Bulletin of the Legal Action Group. London: The Group, (1984)
Linda G. Mills, Killing her Softly: Intimate Abuse and the Violence of State Intervention, 113 HARV. L. REV. 550, 558 n.32 (1999)
Menkel-Meadow, Carrie. Dispute Processing and Conflict Resolution: Theory, Practice and Policy. Aldershot: Ashgate, (2003)
Patrick Glen Drake, Victim-Offender Mediation in Texas: “When Eye for Eye” Becomes “Eye to Eye,” 47 S. Tex. L. Rev. 647, 665 (2006).
Uc Davis Journal of Juvenile Law and Policy. Davis, CA: Advocates for the Rights of Children, (1996)
Disabilities and Mental Health (HP9)
Disabilities and Mental Health (HP9)
Table of Contents
TOC o “1-3” h z u HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788766” Introduction PAGEREF _Toc325788766 h 3
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788767” Discussion PAGEREF _Toc325788767 h 3
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788768” Barriers to health care for people with disabilities and mental health disorders PAGEREF _Toc325788768 h 3
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788769” Mental health: The minority and the uninsured PAGEREF _Toc325788769 h 4
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788770” The Americans with Disabilities Act PAGEREF _Toc325788770 h 5
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788771” Impact of the ADA PAGEREF _Toc325788771 h 5
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788772” The Mental Health Parity Act PAGEREF _Toc325788772 h 7
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788773” Impact of the MHPA PAGEREF _Toc325788773 h 7
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788774” Summary PAGEREF _Toc325788774 h 8
HYPERLINK l “_Toc325788775” References PAGEREF _Toc325788775 h 9
IntroductionDisability is an umbrella term that is used to refer to impairments, restrictions to certain participations and limitations to some activities. The individual with a particular health condition will have some difficulty as they interact with factors existing around them including personal and environmental factors. Approximately more than one billion people are living with some form of disability. In addition, there is a rising trend in the rates of disability partly because of the aging populations as well as the growing chronic health conditions. All people living with a disability require the same general health care needs as the other people in addition to the health care needs they have resulting from their individual conditions. Individuals with disabilities are reported to seek more health care compared to those that do not have a disability. An example is a recent survey focusing on individuals with serious mental disorders that found more than 30% of people in developed countries and more than 70% in developing countries had received zero treatment in the year before the study. This paper will address the health policy issues relating to disabilities and mental health.
DiscussionBarriers to health care for people with disabilities and mental health disordersThere are a number of barriers that people with disabilities have to overcome in order to access health care. These barriers include high costs, limited availability of services and some physical challenges. The costs arise in transportation and affordability hence two reasons that create challenges to people with disabilities when accessing health services. In low-income countries, approximately 32% of non-disabled persons are not able to afford health care whereas those with disabilities that are not able to afford health care are approximately 52%. People with disabilities have to overcome the lack of appropriate services in health care (Crowley, 2006a). Lack of services is a very significant issue that is addressed in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Physical barriers include uneven access to various building and rooms in the institutions, inadequate washroom facilities, inaccessible parking areas, and medical equipment that are not easily accessible. An example is the limited access to breast and cervical cancer screening for women that have mobility difficulties since the examination tables as well as the mammography equipment only accommodate women who can stand (they are not height-adjustable) (Crowley, 2006b). People with disabilities experience the problem of inadequate skills in health care providers. They are twice likely to consider the skills of a health care provider to be inadequate to address their needs and four times more likely to report that a health care provider treated them badly. In addition, they are three times more likely to present a complaint of denial of care.
Mental health: The minority and the uninsured
Mental illnesses are severe and disabling orders that affect all populations irrespective of the ethnicity or race. Effective treatments have been embraced over time but disparities continue to affect people with mental disorders including limited availability of health services, lack of access to health services and low quality of treatment for ethnic as well as racial minorities (Mental Health America, 2011a). The disability burden on the ethnic and racial minorities therefore tends to be higher. The uninsured people with disabilities and mental disorders continue to find health care services highly costly and unaffordable. Another disparity experienced by the ethnic and racial minorities is the limited information available regarding mental health needs since few studies get to be carried out based on this area.
An estimate of 43 million Americans has zero health insurance (Mental Health America, 2011b). Federal and state parity laws continue to address this issue by for instance equalizing mental health benefits in insurance programs for the public. However, the many people who have no private insurance and are unemployed continue to find access to health services unaffordable since they don’t get public benefits and they have no private insurance to pay for their health care costs.
The Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal civil-rights statute that aims to protect the rights of those people with disabilities. The impacts of the ADA are felt on access to employment, access to state as well local government programs and access to public services such as transportation among other things (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2011a). It has a very broad scope in addressing the various factors that bar the participation of disabled persons. The Act’s civil rights are similar to the ones that have been developed in the past by the federal government purposing to address a number of issues regarding women, ethnic, racial and also religious minorities. Equal opportunity is the priority in the ADA therefore most provisions prohibit discrimination and provide for the equality of all Americans in the pursuit of employment, products, services as well as other opportunities.
Impact of the ADA
The ADA is projected to create equality for people with disability where they are able to participate in the society in as much capacity as those that are not disabled. In the event that the Act is implemented appropriately, people with disability get equal consideration in employment. It is important to understand that although ADA prohibits employers from discriminating disabled persons, it does not extend to the provision for accessible housing, job training, and such services (Amado et al, 2002a). Many people are yet to understand some major provisions of the ADA including that of employment. The Act only advocates for some services such as accessible transportation to be made available but it does not provide transportation for the people living with disabilities. The impacts of the ADA are yet to be felt fully as its implementation is reported by Americans with disabilities to be partial. Most remain frustrated that discrimination still exists although ADA has already been implemented. The barriers they face are primarily based on attitude and there is also the additional issue of growing backlash opposing the rights of people with disabilities as well as ADA.
Another impact of the ADA is the increased access to education, accommodations in the workplace and transport for people with disabilities. Following the various provisions of the ADA more opportunities have been created for them to pursue their interests compared to before the ADA was passed (Mental Health America, 2012). Resulting from the greater access, a passive increase in community participation has been reported. Active increase in participation has also been identified in a number of scenarios due to the increased efforts of employers, businesses, and also governments in reaching out to disabled persons and encouraging them to participate.
Options for independent living have become better for persons living with disabilities especially after the ‘Olmstead v.I.C.’ decision taken by the Supreme Court requiring community integration (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2011b). The process of attaining the goals of independent living is however being slowed down by outdated government restrictions, some medical attitudes and other such factors. The goal of ADA that has had limited impact on the lives of persons with disabilities is economic self-sufficiency. Although there is a considerable number of Americans with disabilities that has experienced improved quality of life, there are those that remain disenfranchised.
The Mental Health Parity Act
The Mental Health Parity Act (MHPA) is applied to those organizations that have 51 employees or more. According to the Act, the employers of such companies are required to provide coverage regarding the diagnosis as well as the necessary medical treatment for mental disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 2012). The terms and conditions applied here are similar to those applied to other medical conditions. Major provisions include the requirement to provide lifetime and annual maximums that are not discriminatory for medical as well as mental health benefits (Amado et al, 2002b). Also, a health plan is restricted from imposing dollar limits on hospital stays together with outpatient visits but it is legal to impose day limits on the same. Substance abuse and chemical dependency are excluded by the Act from equal maximums requirement.
Impact of the MHPA
The implementation of the MHPA was initially hindered by efforts of insurers and employers to circumvent its legislations. A particular strategy that insurers used was larger emphasis on cost sharing whereby they raised co-pays, deductibles, and also out-of-pocket maximums. There were also impositions of limits on the number of days in a hospital visit as well as the number of visits with a health care provider. The MHPA has had significant impact on the fight against insurance discrimination towards people seeking mental health treatment and also treatment of substance use disorders. Following the implementation of the Act, equal insurance coverage for both mental and physical health has increased (Amado et al, 2002c). The Act preserves the current state laws on parity and consumer protection while at the same time extending protection of services for mental health to more than 80 million Americans who are not protected by state laws.
SummaryPeople with disability experience a number of challenges in the access of health care services. This is especially worse in those that are uninsured and the minority. The Americans with Disabilities is a legislation that was enacted to address issues relating to the health of persons with disabilities and mental health disorders. The various legislations addressing people with disabilities purpose to improve their quality of life provide equal opportunities for them enhance their economic self-sufficiency and increase their participation.
ReferencesAmado L. N., Rice P. D. and Wunderslich G. S. (2002). The Dynamics Of Disability: Measuring And Monitoring Disability For Social Security Programs. The National Academic Press. Retrieved May 25, 2012 from HYPERLINK “http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309084199″http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309084199
Crowley, S. J (2006). Access to health and long-term services for people with disabilities. Kaiser Family Foundation. Retrieved May 25, 2012 from HYPERLINK “http://www.kaiseredu.org/tutorials/Disabilities/disabilitiescare.html”http://www.kaiseredu.org/tutorials/Disabilities/disabilitiescare.html
Mental health information. Mental Health America. 2012. Retrieved May 25, 2012 from HYPERLINK “http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/”http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/
Mental health: The minority and the uninsured. Mental Health America. 2011. Retrieved May 25, 2012 from HYPERLINK “http://www.nmha.org/”http://www.nmha.org/
Mental Illness. American Psychiatric Association. 2012. Retrieved May 25, 2012 from HYPERLINK “http://www.psychiatry.org/mental-illness”http://www.psychiatry.org/mental-illness
State Laws Mandating or Regulating Mental Health Benefits. National Conference of State Legislatures. 2011. Retrieved May 25, 2012 from HYPERLINK “http://www.ncsl.org/issues-research/health/mental-health-benefits-state-laws-mandating-or-re.aspx”http://www.ncsl.org/issues-research/health/mental-health-benefits-state-laws-mandating-or-re.aspx.