At the Senate Appropriation’s Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies hearing on the President’s proposed FY23 Budget, mental health and the new 988 crisis and suicide prevention hotline were raised multiple times. Chairwoman Patty Murray, in her opening remarks, noted that “the kids are not okay,” as over 200,000 kids have lost
On May 4th, 2022, the White House announced that it will convene a White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health in September, more than 50 years since the first and only conference on the issue. The first White House Conference on Nutrition was convened in 1969 by President Nixon with the goal of ending
On Friday, May 6th, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA) released a statement marking Child Care Provider Appreciation Day. He noted that, “America’s child care workforce plays an essential role in our economy and provides millions of parents with the ability to have jobs of their own.” The Chairman also highlighted the
According to Politico, the four top Democratic and Republican appropriators met on Thursday, April 28th, 2022, to begin negotiations on a budget for fiscal year 2023. The stated goal is to have the top-line defense and non-defense numbers locked in before summer, the first step in setting the budget. The House Appropriations Committee has ambitions
On Tuesday, April 26, 2022, the Economic Policy Subcommittee of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee held a hearing, “Child Care and Other Policy Tools to Combat Bottlenecks and Inflation.” Chair Senator Warren (D-MA) started the hearing with an overview of the problem – inflation is on the rise due, in part, to
Employment rates in daycare remain about 10% below pre-pandemic levels, much lower than other industries, according to a timely article from Bloomberg. While Congress continues to debate how to help families access child care, the workforce is dwindling. “Low pay, demanding work and a lack of benefits have driven child-care workers out of the industry
A research letter published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics shows that adolescent suicide rates increased in the first year of the pandemic, according to research in 14 states. Researchers from Harvard, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Boston Children’s hospital sifted through death certificates of 85,000 people that died by suicide in 14 states and
Injuries are the most common cause of death among children and adolescents, and for more than 60 years, motor vehicle crashes were the top cause of the injury-related deaths for children. However, beginning in 2017, gun-related deaths took the top spot on the list. “That spike is attributable to the simultaneous crackdown on motor vehicle
“National Foster Care Month is an initiative of the Children's Bureau. Each May, we take time to acknowledge foster parents, family members, volunteers, mentors, policymakers, child welfare professionals, and other members of the community who help children and youth in foster care find permanent homes and connections. We use this time to renew our commitment
The CLWA recommends Congress extend foster care to age 21 so that every young person in foster care will have an option to stay in care, resulting in improved education, housing, and employment outcomes. In 2008, Congress passed the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act (PL 110-351). That law gave states the option