Calling for a fundamental change in the focus of public policy in America, this book paints a vivid portrait of the nation's social health. It proposes an agenda for monitoring America's social well-being built around 16 key indicators of American life, such as infant mortality, teenage suicide, health insurance coverage, and affordable housing. Acknowledgments 7 Introduction 9 Part I Social Reporting in American Life 15 Chapter 1 We Can Do Better: Toward a New Public Dialogue on Social Health 17 Chapter 2 Shaping Everyday Discourse: The News Media and Social Issues 31 Chapter 3 Social Reports: Institutionalizing the Reporting of Social Indicators 47 Chapter 4 Measuring Social Health: The Index of Social Health and the National Survey of Social Health 69 Part II A Closer Look: Key Indicators of Social Health 91 Chapter 5 Social Indicators for Children 95 Infant Mortality 96 Child Poverty 101 Child Abuse 106 Chapter 6 Social Indicators for Youth 111 Teenage Suicide 112 Teenage Drug Abuse 117 High School Dropouts 122 Chapter 7 Social Indicators for Adults 127 Unemployment 128 Wages 133 Health Insurance Coverage 138 Chapter 8 Social Indicators for the Elderly 143 Poverty, Ages 65 and Over 144 Out-of-Pocket Health Costs, Ages 65 and Over 149 Chapter 9 Social Indicators for All Ages 155 Homicides 156 Alcohol-Related Traffic Fatalities 161 Food Stamp Coverage 166 Affordable Housing 171 Income Inequality 176 Conclusion 181 Notes 187 List of Tables and Graphs 215 Appendix A Selected Social Indicator Data Over Time 219 Appendix B Technical Note on the Index of Social Health 235 Appendix C Technical Note on the National Survey of Social Health 241 Index 247 About the Institute 253 About the Authors 255