One of the first human service issues to be taken up by Congress will be education. The Senate HELP Committee has been in deep discussions with the Chairman, Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) hoping to move quickly on a bill to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in the next month. The last time
The Senate Caucus on Foster Youth has a new co-chair, Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). She replaces Senator Mary Landrieu who is an original co-chair along with Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) when the caucus was formed in 2009. Senator Landrieu did not win her re-election race. Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) made the announcement and welcomed Stabenow
The Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities has released a list of the upcoming hearings with the next one being this week on February 27 and 28. It will be held at the Marriott City Center, 520 SW Broadway, Portland, OR 97205, To attend in person or via webinar/teleconference and receive a copy
HHS is receiving comments on a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) on the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) was published in the Federal Register on Monday, February 9, 2015. The text of the NPRM can be found here in the Federal Register. The NPRM includes changes made as a result
On Thursday, February 19, HHS released the FY 2015 funds of $386 million for the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (Home Visiting Program/MIECHV). In releasing the funds HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell said, “Home visits by a nurse, social worker, or early childhood educator during pregnancy and in the first years of life
The Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) on the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) was published in the Federal Register on Monday, February 9, 2015. The text of the NPRM can be found here in the Federal Register. The NPRM includes changes made as a result of the enactment of the
On Tuesday Capitol Hill was also the setting for a briefing on the reintroduction of the Family-based Foster Care Services Act of 2015. The legislation, S 429 and HR 835, would clarify in Medicaid policy the definition of therapeutic foster care that is consistent and could be applied through all the states. TFC is an
A Tuesday, February 10 congressional briefing entitled, Reducing Overreliance on Psychotropics and Increasing Use of Psychosocial Treatments for Children and Youth in Foster Care focused attention on the need for stronger treatment options for children in foster care. The briefing was cosponsored by First Focus, Voice for Adoption and the State Policy Advocacy Reform Center.
HHS has released a new report on youth in foster care focusing more specifically on their capacity to deal with the range of financial issues and barriers they will experience once they leave or “age-out” of foster care. The research Supporting Youth in Foster Care by HHS and partners the Urban Institute and Chapin Hall
Last week, not too far off from the fiftieth anniversary of the creation of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the House Committee on Education and the Workforce approved HR 5. The vote followed party lines when it passed by a vote of 21 to 16. There were no hearings on the legislation with
