ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota's low-income families get more help paying for child care starting Monday.

New provisions in the Child Care Assistance program say families can enroll for a year instead of six months at a time and that parents can go to school and still qualify for child care assistance.

Anne Krisnik, executive director of the Joint Religious Legislative Coalition (JRLC), says the new law will be good for providers, employers and, most of all, families.

"The JRLC representing Minnesota's faith community across the state sees families that are really struggling and sees the importance of child care as a way to create stability," she states.

JRLC is part of the Kids Can't Wait Coalition, along with other groups that include the Children's Defense Fund- Minnesota and Minnesota's YMCAs.

The Coalition advocates a two-generation approach to getting families out of poverty. It says affordable, high-quality child care helps children get ready for school and helps their parents move up in the workforce.

Karen DeVos runs a child care center in Ada, in the northwestern part of the state. She says the new law will be especially beneficial in greater Minnesota where many parents work seasonal or part-time jobs.

"It's really important,” she stresses. “Those children are going to be able to be here every single day, getting the same education as all of our other families, just like our private pay families, and just being able to have that consistency on a daily basis."

About 30,000 Minnesota children will be affected by the changes. But 2,000 families are on a waiting list to get into the child care assistance program.

DeVos says providers have to worry about a steady income just like families do.

"We want our providers to have stability in their income as well,” she states. “If we have an opening, we're much likely to go with the family who we know is going to be consistent, 8-to-5 Monday through Friday, rather than a fluctuating schedule. It just makes business sense."

DeVos and advocates such as the Kids Can't Wait Coalition say there's more to do. They hope the Legislature will raise outdated reimbursement rates and expand the program to better serve families experiencing homelessness.





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CARSON CITY, Nev. - Health advocates are pressing the U.S. Senate to approve the Build Back Better Act, because it would improve Medicaid and CHIP - the Children's Health Insurance Program.

The bill, which already has passed the House, would offer 12 months of continuous coverage to children who qualify for Medicaid.

A new brief co-authored by Joan Alker - research professor at Georgetown University's McCourt School of Public Policy and executive director of its Center for Children and Families - found that during the early Trump years, one in ten children experienced a gap in coverage over the course of 12 months.

"After we saw this troubling reverse in the progress we'd made as a country in reducing the number of uninsured kids, which came to a halt in 2017 and started going in the wrong direction," said Alker, "the Build Back Better bill would really turn that around and start moving the country in the right direction."

In Nevada, children in families of three earning about $45,000 a year or less are eligible for affordable health coverage through Medicaid or Nevada Checkup. Opponents say the $2 trillion Build Back Better Act is too costly.

The bill also would permanently fund CHIP, so it doesn't have to be renewed every few years. It also makes it much easier for all states to expand eligibility for kids.

Kendall Lyons, director of health policy for the Children's Advocacy Alliance in Nevada, said the bill also would cut down maternal mortality by extending post-partum Medicaid coverage for one year.

"The extension of post-partum coverage from 60 days, which is what it currently is in Nevada, to 12 months," said Lyons, "would be huge for providing crucial care for people after they've given birth."

Last year a report from the State of Nevada on maternal mortality found that there were 129 pregnancy-associated deaths in the Silver State from 2015 to 2019.

CAMP HILL, Pa. - Pennsylvania's child welfare and behavioral health services are in crisis, with a worker shortage exacerbated by the pandemic, a new report reveals.

Between low wages and emotionally demanding work, advocates say real solutions are needed to ensure these agencies are able to help at-risk children.

The Pennsylvania Council of Children, Youth & Family Services' report includes a survey into the struggles facing many child-serving behavioral health providers.

Of the 51 agencies that responded, one in four said it has more than 30 vacant positions. Council President and CEO Terry Clark said the shortage has a ripple effect.

"Whether it's individual therapy, whether it's a child coming into a particular residential treatment facility, and they don't have staff, they're waiting somewhere," said Clark. "As a result, we're seeing kids that aren't getting their needs met. They're not able to start to address some of the underlying causes of their trauma."

More than half of respondents said they were forced to delay expanding programs as a result of being understaffed. The report recommends allowing providers to receive the maximum allowable reimbursement rate from the state for their services.

Nancy Kukovich is president and CEO of Adelphoi, which offers behavioral health care for children and teens, including 14 group homes in the state.

She said the company has 30 to 40 current job openings, even after raising the starting pay to $18 an hour. Kukovich said one recommendation from the report she sees as critical is student loan forgiveness.

"It just kills me that I am hiring people to work at Adelphoi, I expect them to have college educations," said Kukovich. "And yet, I'm not paying them enough for them to send their kids to college. I mean, that's just on its face wrong."

The report also recommends providers compile data from exit interviews to learn more about why staff members leave, and develop plans based on the results to recruit and retain employees.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- The 800 children living in foster care near Albuquerque are some of the first to receive a new therapeutic kit designed to help them manage change, uncertainty and trauma.

The city has rolled out "EcoCare Kits" as a tool to connect foster children to the healing qualities of nature.

Austin Adderholt, community outreach and recruitment manager for New Mexico Kids Matter, said the agency is always looking for new approaches in the foster-care system to benefit kids for the long term.

"What we're trying to do is make sure that we're introducing our foster kids to mindfulness and connection with nature, to help them cope with the trauma that they've been through," Adderholt explained.

New Mexico has been one of the hardest-hit states for children losing a primary caregiver due to COVID-19, according to a report by the Journal of Pediatrics. The report said along the U.S.-Mexico border, up to 67% of all children who lost a parent or caregiving grandparent identify as Hispanic.

Adderholt pointed out New Mexico Kids Matter is also working to see if the therapeutic nature kits have a positive impact for kids working through the court system.

"We're going to be giving them to our court-appointed special advocates, which are our CASAs, who are the advocates for the foster kids in court," Adderholt noted.

Three hundred kits were initially created. They contain a magnifying glass to study bugs; a bandana that serves as a board game; and an award-winning children's book, "Everybody Needs a Rock," set in the Southwest.

Dave Simon, director of the Albuquerque Parks and Recreation Department, wants New Mexico children to discover nature is a lifelong gift.

"The thing about the kit that stands out is that we designed it so it could be used in natural settings," Simon emphasized. "But this kit can also be used in a child's backyard. We know that the immense healing powers of nature can help, no matter where the child is."

Simon plans to take the New Mexico-created kit to national conferences and hopes it will catch on as a national model for working with foster children.