SUMMARY DESCRIPTION

Materials concerning her work on federal government legislation and policy formulation in the areas of health, social security, welfare and consumer protection.

QUANTITY
4 linear feet (ca. 8,000 pages)

DONOR
Gerald R. Ford (accession number 77-107)

ACCESS
Open. Some items are temporarily restricted under terms of the donor's deed of gift, a copy of which is available on request, or under National Archives and Records Administration general restrictions (36 CFR 1256).

COPYRIGHT
Gerald Ford donated to the United States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to remain with them. Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public domain.

Prepared by Dale Harley Whitaker, June 1980
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INTRODUCTION

Pamela Needham came to the White House as a summer intern while attending Mount Holyoke College. Later, she returned as a member of the speech writers' research staff. Needham was promoted to Director of Research before joining the Domestic Council.

In 1973, Pamela Needham was appointed Staff Assistant for Health, Social Security and Welfare in the Human Resources area of the Domestic Council. Under the supervision of Associate Director James H. Cavanaugh, she coordinated fact‑finding analyses on health, social security and welfare issues. She attained the position of Assistant Director before departing in June 1975.

In 1973, Pamela Needham was appointed Staff Assistant for Health, Social Security and Welfare in the Human Resources area of the Domestic Council. Under the supervision of Associate Director James H. Cavanaugh, she coordinated fact‑finding analyses on health, social security and welfare issues. She attained the position of Assistant Director before departing in June 1975.

As Assistant Director, Needham assembled information, drafted issue statements and handled referrals. The memoranda, reports and publications in this collection reveal that Needham's duties also entailed reviewing proposals, arranging meetings and coordinating the flow of information between the White House staff, departments and interest groups.

Needham helped to formulate policies by conducting pre‑State of the Union investigations on welfare reform and national health insurance. The material on welfare reform exemplifies the manner in which the alternatives to domestic policies were evaluated. The memoranda indicate how Needham outlined the impact of options being considered by the Administration. The support and opposition to aspects of welfare reform policies were identified for the White House staff and the President.

Financing the social security program is the major topic in the social security files. The Advisory Council on Social Security furnished much of the background material and recommendations for revising the social security program.

Consumer issues also were assigned to Needham. She compiled information on consumer regulatory reform for the White House staff. Needham's files contain materials on a proposed legislative program for the 94th Congress aimed at improving representation of consumer interests.

There are documents in Needham's files dating from the Nixon Administration which focus on welfare reform and Aid to Families with Dependent Children. After June 1975, Sarah C. Massengale inherited Needham's duties concerning health, social security and welfare. Dawn Bennett‑Alexander assumed responsibility for consumer affairs which Needham had managed.

Related Materials (June 1980)
Related collections include White House Central Files Subject File categories HE (Health), BE (Business) and WE (Welfare). Other Domestic Council collections containing materials on topics handled by Needham include the files of Spencer Johnson, Sarah Massengale, and Dawn Bennett-Alexander.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Health Files, 1974-75.  (Boxes 1‑2, 0.8 linear feet)
Correspondence, memoranda, publications, reports, and proposals. These files include material on abortion, high blood pressure, health care management, and population. There are memoranda on the Population Commission and budget notes on financing research to study population growth. There also are correspondence on national health insurance and a proposal from a Health Maintenance Organization in New Jersey.

Arranged alphabetically by subject and thereunder chronologically.

Social Security Files, 1974-75. (Boxes 3‑5, 1.0 linear feet)
Reports, memoranda, correspondence, and publications. Topics include long-term care in nursing homes and comments and recommendations about federal activities made by the Congressional Black Caucus. Minutes of meetings of the Advisory Council on Social Security give a review of the issues concerning the Administration.

Arranged alphabetically by subject and thereunder chronologically.

Welfare Files, 1974-75.  (Boxes 5‑7, 0.8 linear feet)
Correspondence, memoranda, newsclippings, and talking points. These files include material on social experiments to test the effects of a negative income tax and the Income Supplement Program. The objectives of welfare reform are stated in the talking points.

Arranged alphabetically by subject and thereunder chronologically.

General Subject Files, 1974-75.  (Boxes 7‑9, 0.8 linear feet)
Publications, news articles, handwritten notes, memoranda, and correspondence. There are various publications on Project Head Start and correspondence on proposed legislative programs to be incorporated into a Presidential Consumer Message to the Congress.

Arranged alphabetically by subject and thereunder chronologically.

Chronological Files, 1974-75.  (Boxes 9‑10, 0.6 linear feet)
Correspondence, memoranda, talking points, referrals and responses, invitations, and schedule proposals. General topics of discussion include: consumer protection, a program proposal for farmworkers, meetings, and health (cancer, aging, and abortion). Replies to letters addressed to the President were prepared by Needham. Summaries of research on special issues are included in these files.

Arranged chronologically.

CONTAINER LIST

Box 1 - Health Files

• Abortion
• American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons ‑ Committee on Injuries (Published Report)
• California Hospital Association ‑ Government Regulations (Publications)
• Center for Community Economic Development ‑ Title VII Program
• Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions ‑ Medicine (Publications)
• Citizens for the Treatment of High Blood Pressure, Inc. ‑ Publications (1)‑(3)
• Department of Health, Education and Welfare Reports
• Health Care Management Systems, Inc. ‑ Computer Projects (1)-(2)

Box 2 - Health Files

• Health Maintenance Organization Office, Morristown, NJ (1)‑(3)
• National Board on Graduate Education (Publications)
• National Geriatric Society (Published Report)
• Population
• Population Commission (1)-(2)
• President's Committee on Health Education (Publication)

Box 3 - Social Security Files

• Actuarial Audit of the Social Security System
• Advisory Council on Social Security (1)-(2)
• Advisory Council on Social Security ‑ 1975 Reports (1)‑(2)
• Cohen, Wilbur J. ‑ Financing Social Security
• Conference on Inflation ‑ Summary, 9/19‑20/74
• Congressional Black Caucus Position Statements (1)‑(2)

Box 4 - Social Security Files

• Congressional Black Caucus Position Statements (3)‑(5)
• Department of Health, Education and Welfare Newsletter
• Department of Health, Education and Welfare Organizational Structure
• Domestic Council Issue Review Meeting, 12/11/74
• Domestic Policy Initiatives
• Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund ‑ Annual Report
• Federal Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance Trust Funds ‑ Annual Report
• Federal Supplemental Medical Insurance Trust Fund ‑ Annual Report
• Historical Description of the Social Security Program
• Miscellaneous
• Nursing Homes ‑ Long Term Care Under Medicaid and Medicare
• Senior Citizens Conference, Lake Junaluska, North Carolina, 7/22/74
• Social Security Administration ‑ Annual Report, 1974

Box 5 - Social Security Files

• Social Security Benefits and Taxes (Published Speech)
• Social Security Cash Benefits Program
• Social Security Financing
• Social Security for Homemakers
• Social Security Legislation: Copy of Printed Bill (1)-(2)
• Social Security Policy Issues
• Social Security Program ‑ Problems

Box 5 (Continued) - Welfare Files

• Aid to Families with Dependent Children
• California's Blueprint for Welfare Reform
• Experiments ‑ Income Maintenance/Negative Income Tax (Published Articles)
• Experiments ‑ New Jersey Graduated Work Incentive (Published Reports)
• Income Supplement Program (ISP)
• Michigan ‑ General Correspondence
• Michigan ‑ House of Representatives ‑ Welfare Reform (Published Report)

Box 6 - Welfare Files

• Michigan ‑ Welfare Work Incentives (Published Study)
• Miscellaneous
• Nathan, Richard ‑ Federal Income Security Policy
• National Health Insurance and Health Maintenance Organizations
• Newspaper Clippings
• Supplemental Security Income ‑ Issue Paper
• Tax Bill
• Welfare Correspondence
• Welfare Reform
• Welfare Reform ‑ Background Material
• Welfare Reform ‑ State of the Union Policy Issues
• Welfare Reform ‑ Talking Points
• Welfare Replacement
• Welfare Replacement Proposal (1)

Box 7 - Welfare Files

• Welfare Replacement Proposal (2)
• Welfare Replacement ‑ State of the Union Policy Issues

Box 7 (Continued) - General Subject Files

• Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (Published Report)
• Consumer Affairs ‑ Proposed Legislation for the 94th Congress
• Consumer Message to Congress (1)-(2)
• Consumer Policies
• Consumer Protection
• Consumer Reform
• Consumer Representation Act of 1975 ‑ Options

Box 8 - General Subject Files

• Consumer Representation by Executive Order
• Council of Economic Advisers ‑ Published Report on Economic Developments and Policies
• National Health Insurance
• Presidential Leadership on Consumer Issues
• Project Head Start ‑ Publications (1)-(5)

Box 9 - General Subject Files

• Project Head Start ‑ Publications (6)
• Regulatory Reform
• Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs ‑ Published Congressional Reports (1)‑(3)

Box 9 (Continued) - Chronological Files

• August ‑ November 1974

Box 10 - Chronological Files

• December 1974 ‑ June 1975