On Monday, April 27, 2020, the US Supreme Court upheld a provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that Congress had blocked. The issue involved the “Risk Corridors” provisions of the ACA and whether or not Congress could renege on a provision that sought to level health insurance financing in the first years of the
On Tuesday, April 21, a fourth COVID-19 relief package was agreed to and began to move through Congress for final approval on Thursday. Some are referring to it as coronavirus bill 3.1 or 3.5 because it refills some of the funding initiatives created in the first three bills. The bill does not add additional state
While some in Congress are calling for a slow-down in passing the next bill, there is also the possibility the new installment of $320 billion in the loan program could run out rapidly depending on who you believe in their projections. In addition, the bill passed last Thursday does little to address state and local
Young people in and aging out of foster care have been hit hard by COVID-19. Without family to turn to, young people should have access to support and services so they can make it through this crisis healthy and ready to thrive. Congress should provide this assistance to young people by increasing Chafee funds by
On Wednesday, April 22, CWLA hosted the webinar, Pandemic Shines Light on Needs of Older Youth Involved with Child Welfare. Victoria Kelly, CWLA board member, and Professor Cassandra Simmel from Rutgers’s School of Social Work moderated the panel. Panelists included Professor Laura Abrams from UCLA, Grace Hillard-Koshinsky from New England Association of Child Welfare Commissioner
The three most significant legislative actions in terms of this nation’s history of child welfare policy have one thing in common: they were all followed by three of the worst recessions in the past half-century. The Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act (PL 96-272), passed on June 17, 1980. It created Title IV-E of the
While CWLA applauds Congress for the efforts made to contain the spread and impact of the pandemic, more aid is needed to protect children and families most at risk during this time and address the emerging needs of states and localities. Over the last month, CWLA has emphasized the real experiences that child welfare agencies
On Tuesday, April 14, 2020, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities released a devastating analysis, States Need Significantly More Fiscal Relief to Slow the Emerging Deep Recession, that indicates that state and local governments are going to require a massive amount of federal funding as those budgets absorb the impact of the COVID-19 virus.
In the last week to ten days, a number of groups and leaders have submitted public letters outlining their greatest concerns. One of the most prominent was a letter by the National Governors Association (NGA), which is currently co-chaired by Governor Larry Hogan (R-MD) and Governor Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) calling on Congress to provide an
On Tuesday, April 7, the Administration requested another $250 billion for the Small Business Loans that just opened a little more than a week ago. The forgiveness loans are open to small businesses of less than 500 employees. SBA loans are available to nonprofit organizations. There has been significant confusion and even frustration as loan