JohnS

About John Sciamanna

John Sciamanna is CWLA's Vice President of Public Policy.

Youth Mobile Response Services: Investing in Mental Health and Race Equity

In the last year, it has become impossible to shield ourselves from the role of law enforcement, mental health systems, and their relationships to racial justice. Historically, both systems have harmed communities of color and continue to do so today. Complicit in racism and discrimination, both law enforcement and mental health systems continually perpetuate "negatives

Open Enrollment for ACA Health Care Continues

According to information released by HHS, many purchasers on the marketplaces will see their premiums decrease, on average, by $50 per person per month and $85 per policy per month. An average of four out of five consumers currently enrolled in a plan through HealthCare.gov will be able to find a plan for $10 or

Thriving Children and Families: Prevention With Purpose

The Children’s Bureau hosted a webinar on Tuesday, April 13, 2021, to introduce the 2021/2022 Prevention Resource Guide. The guide shows how the most important thing we can do is support families in ways that build upon their strengths and enable them to care for their children safely before maltreatment is even a possibility. When

New Online Resource Allows for Deeper Analysis of State Child Protection Laws

Mathematica and Child Trends have unveiled a new database that allows a deeper understanding of each state’s child protection systems and laws. The State Child Abuse & Neglect Policies Database allows researchers, analysts, advocates, policymakers to broaden their understanding of how differences in state laws and policies might influence state variability in reported rates of child abuse

Expanded ACA Access Through Marketplace This Month

April 1, 2021, started the implementation of new and additional tax credits for health insurance purchased through the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The March American Rescue Plan provided significant increases in tax credit for people who purchase insurance through the federal or their state ACA exchanges. The beginning of these new credits was April 1.

FDIC Launches #GetBanked Campaign to Address Millions of ‘Unbanked’ Americans

There is little argument that millions of Americans are in need of assistance. However, once funds like pandemic-related stimulus payments are disbursed, how will those Americans receive their payments? The usual response is through direct deposit or a paper check, but 7.1 million American households operate outside of the banking system. This leaves millions of

Congress Returns For Start of Appropriations and Another Reconciliation

Congress returns this week with a busy two months before the next holiday on Memorial Day. Since the spring break, the President has released his infrastructure bill’s outlines with expectations that a second part or piece of an infrastructure bill that addresses human services will be coming out soon. In addition to infrastructure, Congress will

Record Numbers at Border

On Thursday, April 8, 2021, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released monthly data on border crossing, which found that over 18,800 unaccompanied children crossed the border in March. That exceeds any other previous month, with May 2019 reaching the previous high of 11,000 children.   Overall the CBP indicated that more than 172,000 persons attempted entry along

Week of the Young Child

We’re excited to announce that NAEYC’s Week of the Young Child is here! During the week of April 10-16,  join us in celebrating young children and the systems that support them.   This is an opportunity to draw public attention to the challenges children face and the people and programs that help meet their needs—especially

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