Open enrollment under the Affordable Care Act (ACA-Obamacare) continues this week. People can get started or renew their policy by going to HealthCare.gov. HHS reported increases in the enrollments the first week compared to last year at this time. Approximately 177,000 consumers successfully selected a plan on the first Saturday and Sunday of this year’s
On Wednesday, October 30, 2019, the District of Columbia became the first state to have their Family First Prevention Plan, “Putting Families First in DC,” approved by the Children’s Bureau under the federal Family First Prevention Services Act. . DC was the first jurisdiction to submit their plan. Arkansas, Kentucky, and Utah plans are pending
Last month the Children’s Bureau provided guidance allowing states to use Title IV-E Administrative funding for the costs of evaluation of the new Family First Act prevention services. The Child Welfare Policy Manual in response to the question: May a title IV-E agency claim title IV-E administration for the costs of conducting a well-designed and
November is National Adoption Month—a time to recognize the importance of family and lift up the voices of youth in foster care. This National Adoption Month, we’re joining the Every Child Deserves a Family campaign to advocate for an end to discrimination in child welfare. Too often, youth in care are denied loving, identity-affirming homes
On Wednesday, October 30, 2019 the House Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties hearing, “The Administration’s Decision to Deport Critically Ill Children and Their Families,” discussed the actions that lead up to the decision and the policy moving forward. The issue was a policy decision this past summer that would have
While general budget talks continued last week, it comes against a backdrop of increasing budget shortfalls. In early October 2019, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected its near-final report on the 2019 federal budget deficit. The deficit rose to just under $1 trillion for the fiscal year that ended on September 30, with the total
Last week information from the Centers on Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in HHS indicated that health insurance premiums for 2020 would decrease by an average of 4 percent. At the same time, just 12 percent of ACA customers will be living in counties that will only have one insurer providing coverage. Additionally, 20 more
On Friday, October 11, 2019, Federal judges in New York, California, and Washington state all issued temporary injunctions on the Trump Administration’s final rule to expand the definition of “public charge.” The rule applies to immigrants legally seeking to enter the United States or adjusting their legal status (green card status). On Tuesday, October 15,
Despite Congress’s return this past week, the fate of the FY 2020 budget is no clearer. With FY 2020 appropriations expiring on November 21, reports in Washington media outlets, including the Washington Post, indicate that the President has drawn a line in the sand over his desire to have more funding for the Mexico-U.S. border
On Monday, October 7, 2019, the groups that headed up the Supreme Court amicus brief in support of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), released a press statement describing both the reasons for the action and resources that advocates can use. CWLA was one of more than thirty groups signing on in support of