Download or read book Public Health in a Retrenchment Era written by Helen J. Muller and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 1985-01-01 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Public Health in a Retrenchment Era illustrates the political and economic reality of making cutbacks in traditional government-sponsored programs. This book critically examines the issues concerning cutbacks by focusing on Los Angeles County, which has one of the largest public health service systems in the nation, and explains how cutbacks were legitimized and implemented. Muller and Ventriss propose that the retrenchment process offers an opportunity for policymakers and citizens alike to critically examine new choices which may not have existed in periods of fiscal expansion. They criticize the present focus on managerialism and propose an alternative approach. Called the co-possibility model, it enhances a more humane and substantive policy approach in making cutbacks. This model links the citizen, policymaker, and public organization in a new relationship, fostering an environment for policy experimentation and innovation in this retrenchment era.