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Prevent Child Abuse America will advocate for policies that seek to prevent child abuse and neglect from occurring in the first place, including:
The Education Begins at Home Act (EBAH), introduced by Senators Bond (R-MO) and Clinton (D-NY) in the Senate (S. 667), and Representatives Davis (D-IL-7) and Platts (R-PA-19) in the House (H.R. 2343), would establish the first federal funding stream dedicated to early childhood home visitation. EBAH would provide $400 million over three years to states to help them expand and deliver quality home visiting services to families with newborns and young children. Funding would be provided to states on a formula basis to expand and enhance home visiting programs; states would be able to use the funds to support a service delivery approach that best suits their population' needs. EBAH also authorizes two $50 million competitive grants to reach military families and families with English language learners. Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to pass EBAH this year.
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Fully Fund the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA): CAPTA embodies the federal commitment to preventing child maltreatment, but has not been funded adequately to meet the demand for community-based prevention programs. In FY 2009, Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to fund CAPTA programs at their fully authorized levels:
- Fully funding CAPTA state grants, which provide funds for states to improve child protective services, will shorten the time that post-investigative services are delivered, and increase the number of children and families who receive these services.
- Fully funding CAPTA community-based grants,which help states develop and implement effective approaches to preventing child abuse and neglect, will provide communities with additional support to implement effective prevention strategies such as parenting education, home visiting programs, mutual self-help support groups for parents, and crisis nurseries.
- Fully funding CAPTA discretionary research and demonstration grants will help pay for valuable data collection, technical assistance, and grant-funded research and demonstration projects.
Fully Fund Promoting Safe and Stable Families (PSSF): PSSF grants help states pay for family support, family preservation, family reunification, and adoption support. Unfortunately, Congress provided just $63.3 million for the PSSF discretionary grant in FY 2008, $25 million less than was provided the year before, and $136.7 million short of the authorized level. Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to fully fund the PSSF discretionary grant at the authorized level of $200 million in FY 2009. Funding the PSSF discretionary grant at $200 million will promote the expansion of family support services in communities across the nation and provide more intensive help for families in crisis. Research is clear that by investing in positive outcomes for children and families, family support and family strengthening programs can also lead to fewer incidences of child abuse and neglect.
Fully Fund the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG): HHS reports that SSBG funded preventive services for 29 percent of the total child recipients of preventive services in 2005. Despite the many critical services that SSBG makes possible, funding for the block grant has been chipped away over the past decade from a high of $2.8 billion a year to its current authorized level of $1.7 billion a year. The Administration's previous budget requests have proposed to further cut SSBG by $500 million. If enacted, this 30 percent cut will result in the reduction or elimination of critical services and programs. Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to fully fund SSBG at $1.7 billion in FY 2009.
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This year, Congress must reauthorize the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA). Since 1974, CAPTA has been a key part of the federal government's effort to help states and communities improve their practices in preventing and treating child abuse and neglect. CAPTA provides grants to states to support innovation in state child protective services (CPS) and community-based preventive services, as well as research, training, data collection, and program evaluation. Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to reauthorize CAPTA this year with the goal of strengthening and supporting state and community child maltreatment prevention efforts.
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The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) (Title XXI of the Social Security Act) helps states expand health insurance coverage to uninsured children. Despite early gains made in enrollment following the program's enactment in 1997, an estimated 9 million children remain uninsured today. Access to health care contributes to child and family well-being and serves as a protective factor against child maltreatment. The current SCHIP authorization expires in March 2009. Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to reauthorize SCHIP with the goal of seeing legislation enacted that increases children's access to health care.
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In recent years, congressional deliberations have focused on ways to alter the federal child welfare financing structure. Prevent Child Abuse America will continue to evaluate legislative proposals with the dual policy objectives of securing adequate, guaranteed funding for front-end, prevention services and ensuring an effective approach to child welfare that is comprehensive and provides for a full continuum of care.
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The Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention Act (S. 1204, H.R. 2052), introduced by Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Representative Nita Lowey (D-NY-18), would provide $10 million to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop and implement a public information and education campaign aimed at preventing Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS). Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to pass the SBS Prevention Act this year.
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