The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "needy" ...
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Prognosis: Profits
In their quest for growth and profits, large nonprofit hospitals in North Carolina have pushed up healthcare costs, paid executives millions and left thousands with bills they struggle to pay. In a joint investigation, the Charlotte Observer and the News & Observer of Raleigh found that urban hospitals in North Carolina have generated some of the nation’s largest profit margins and have amassed billions of dollars in reserves. Hospitals in the Charlotte area have sued thousands of needy patients they could afford to help, frequently putting liens on their homes and damaging their credit. Raleigh-Durham hospitals, meanwhile, have sent collection agencies after thousands of patients, ruining the credit ratings of many in the process.
Tags: Healthcare; nonprofit hospitals; patients
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Aid to Indian County
Amidst an impoverished American Indian reservation lies nearly of decade of corrupt practices from a welfare program meant to help those who need it. The Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians' Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program has misused more than $6 million in taxpayer money over two years.
Tags: Native Americans; Indians; welfare; Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians' Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
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Ready Money: The Baltimore City Foundation
The investigation of a private nonprofit group, which was formed to benefit city programs for the underprivileged, revealed a number of shocking facts. Some of them being, that a number of city officials used the group to pay for a few items for the mayor’s inauguration and to avoid competitive bidding for the design of the visitors center. Also, some of the donations went to support political initiatives, not those needing help. The foundation was unaware of the happenings because they were asking few questions from the city government.
Tags: city officials; needy; Finance Department; city clerk; Lenwood M. Ivey; funds; support; philanthropy; agency; tax-exempt; Mayor Sheila Dixon
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Indentured Doctors
Throughout the United States foreign doctors are being cheated out of wages, coerced into unfair contracts and being kept away from medically needy patients because their bosses are the ones sponsoring their visas. They work for medical residency and are allowed to live in cities and rural areas with shortage of physicians so long as they work full-time. The program was started by the government, but since its creation there has been little oversight to the abuse of the doctors.
Tags: work visa; immigration; J-1 doctors; Pahrump; pediatrician; health care;
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Poor Priorities?
The Center Township trustee's office's primary goal is to help the poor and the needy, when it controls millions of dollars of real estate which is not on the tax rolls.
Tags: Career Development Institute; Carl L. Drummer; Jon Elrod; Fall Creek
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Criminal Child Care
In Texas no background checks are required for people to receive money from a federally funded child care program for providers. This allowed criminals to receive money from the program. Other cases of fraud occur. The program was intended to help needy parents, yet usually they were the ones on the waiting list.
Tags: child care; background check; family; parents; needy parents; fraud; criminals; federal funds; child care providers
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Pre-K Scandal
This investigation exposed abuse of a taxpayer-funded pre-kindergarten for poor and limited English proficiency children. The principal of one of the pre-kindergartens enrolled her own daughter in the program even though she made too much money to qualify as did thirty-four school district employees who also enrolled their children in it. Many of the schools had waiting lists with needy kids who were denied access because unqualified children were enrolled.
Tags: preschool; pre-kindergarten; education; low income programs; San Antonio Independent School District; SAISD
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State of Neglect
"State of Neglect" is a three day series about the failures of Adult Protective Services, the Texas agency created to protect mentally or physically incapacitated senior citzens. In some instances, the APS left elderly citizens living in rat-infested homes, with little contact with the agency. The Dallas Morning News also discovered that the agency only took advantage of their ability to gain legal "guardianship" of the needy seniors in 33 cases in a total of five years.
Tags: Adult Protective Services; senior citizens; living conditions; Health and Human Services; guardianship
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Taken for a Ride
This story is about how non-profits sold clunker cars to welfare recipients while used-car dealers reaped millions. The non-profit Wheels-to-Work program managers set up exclusive deals with friends who sold used cars to the program. The state spent $10,700 per person, but bought cars that cost $2,300 on average, and twice as much as programs in other states. State officials didn't start to monitor the program until two years after it started, and overlooked suspected fraud and mismanagement.
Tags: car; nonprofit; welfare; welfare recipients; used-car dealers; West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources; Wheels-to-Work Program; Community Action of South Eastern West Virginia; CASE; Belcher's Auto Sales; Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program; National Association of Social Workers; AFL-CIO; Human Resources Development Foundation; Good News Mountaineer Garage; DHHR; Legislative Oversight commission on Workforce Investment
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Motel Children: A community of children lives behind the tired faces of Orange County's aging residential motels. This is the story of their troubled world.
This story details and explains the stories of little children living in motels. The story includes multiple pictures and interviews with children. The story is told through the children's eyes.
Tags: children; motel; poor; needy; kids; residential motels