The Children’s Bureau released the program instructions, ACYF-CB-PI-21-05, for IV-E agencies authorizing programmatic flexibilities from April 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021, for Kinship Navigator Programs. Currently, none of the kinship navigator program models have received an evidence-based standard of practice from the IV-E Clearinghouse, and agencies have not been able to draw down IV-E prevention
The $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief measure has a lot in it that directly and indirectly addresses the impact of this year-long pandemic. It includes several issues that have received increased focus because of this past year’s struggles (for example, the racial and regional inequities within the economy and health care system). There are limited added funds specific
Last week the Biden Administration announced the release of $250 million through the HHS Office of Minority Health for initiatives to promote vaccinations to minority and other underserved populations. The HHS Office of Minority Health (OMH) will offer the funding as health literacy grants to localities, who will partner with community-based organizations. The effort
On Tuesday, March 9, 2021, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions held a hearing entitled “Examining Our COVID-19 Response: An Update from the Frontlines.” Chairwoman Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) highlighted over half a million lives lost and 29 million infected across the country. She also discussed the impact the pandemic is
On Wednesday, March 10, 2021, Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) introduced the Child Poverty Reduction Act (H.R. 1588/ S. 643), which commits to cutting child poverty in half in 10 years, just as the pandemic pushes child poverty toward record levels. The legislation also creates national, evidence-based benchmarks and monitoring
After an initial delaying tactic by Senator Ron Johnson (R-WS) that called for a reading of the bill throughout Thursday, the Senate moved on the American Rescue Plan on Friday morning. A CWLA description of the still-changing package can be found here. Earlier in the week, the Senate Democratic leadership was negotiating various alterations from the
Fostering Families Today and the National Foster Parent Association (NFPA) hosted a webinar on Thursday, March 4, to discuss recent findings from a survey they conducted. This survey was created to discover how foster families are coping through the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 300 foster parents in the U.S. were surveyed during January and February 2021,
On Monday, March 1, 2021, the ABA Center on Children and the Law, Casey Family Programs, Children’s Defense Fund, and Generations United hosted a webinar presenting a new tool that lays out the necessary steps for effective implementation of the kinship provisions under the Family First Prevention Services Act (Family First Act) which includes kinship
On Tuesday, March 2, 2021, the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) hosted an event on child allowances, presenting an array of arguments for and against, including conversations on welfare reform. The Biden Administration, House Democrats, and Republican Senator Mitt Romney have child allowance proposals that address child poverty in America with different measures. Senator Romney (R-UT)
Senate Democrats are hopeful they can complete action on the COVID-19 relief/reconciliation legislation sometime late this week. The goal is to have a package on the President’s desk before extended unemployment runs out on March 14, 2021. There was a major setback for advancing a minimum wage increase as part of the package on