Advocacy

Bill Providing Medicaid Coverage for Youth Formerly in Foster Care Takes Effect

The Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act (or SUPPORT Act), passed in 2018, included a provision titled “Coverage Continuity for Former Foster Care Children Up to Age 26,” on page 10, which took effect on January 1st, 2023. This important provision requires states to cover youth under

Supportive Housing Needs Assessment

CSH released a new, first-of-its-kind national needs assessment of supportive housing, which was developed by looking at data across a spectrum of public systems and found that an estimated 1,125,000 homes are needed to meet the need for supportive housing. From the Summary: “Supportive housing is affordable housing with flexible services that help vulnerable people

Webinar: Missing From Care: Preventing and Responding to Child Trafficking

On January 18th, 2023, the Children’s Bureau Learning and Coordination Center (CBLCC) hosted a national webinar with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) focused upon child trafficking. Featuring NCMEC Executive Director, Melissa Snow, the digital dialogue specifically focused upon understanding the types of child sex trafficking (CST), shifting the language and perspective

CHAMPS Campaign Final Briefing

On December 15th the CHAMPS (Children Need Amazing Parents) initiative held a discussion concerning the conclusion of the five-year program which began in 2017. Hope Cooper facilitated a final informational session discussing findings and lessons learned during the program. Jeremy Kohomban (President and CEO of Children’s Village and Co-chair of CHAMPS) stated that CHAMPS had

Changes to WIC Offerings: Comment Opportunity

USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) announced proposed changes to the foods available to participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) to align the food packages with the latest nutrition science and support equitable access to nutritious foods during critical life stages. “Taken collectively, the changes will increase the

State Paid Leave Explainers

On January 10th, 2023, New America announced updated and improved state paid leave briefs as well as information on wages, benefit caps, and payroll contributions for the coming year. The announcement offered resources that discussed the federal FMLA and the State Paid Family and Medical Leave Programs as well as information on duration and utilization

House of Representatives Elects its Speaker

After 15 rounds of voting, Kevin McCarthy has secured enough votes to become the 53rd Speaker of the House of Representatives. Since 2006, Speaker McCarthy has served California’s 23rd district in Congress. After he was elected to Congress, Speaker McCarthy became Chief Deputy Whip and later served as Majority Whip. In 2014, he was elected

Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth Announces New Leadership

On January 6th, 2023, the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth (CCFY) announced that it will be co-chaired by Congressmembers Gwen Moore (D-WI), Don Bacon (R-NE), Sydney Kamlager (D-CA), and Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA). CCFY is one of the largest bipartisan caucuses in the House of Representatives and the new leaders are committed to improving the

2022 Spending Omnibus and Legislative Recap

This past Congress has certainly had its challenges. Throughout the last Congress, CWLA has joined with national stakeholders and coalitions to increase funding levels across 44 separate funding programs – many of which received an increase in the spending omnibus, and some remained at level funding. While a notable disappointment was the failure to reauthorize

Trevor Project Releases New National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health

On December 15th, the Trevor Project released the 2022 U.S. National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health. For the first time, the report presents findings on the experiences of nearly 34,000 LGBTQ people ages 13-24 in the U.S., segmented by all 50 states. From the summary: “These data provide critical insights into the suicide risk

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