[NC Child Digest] Build Back Better, the NC budget, and sharing your "why"

This is an incredible moment – the Senate is preparing to vote on transformative legislation for early childhood education, housing, and healthcare, the Child Tax Credit, and more. 

We need to take action now to let Senators Burr & Tillis know how much our families need Build Back Better!

WE'RE HIRING

Position Opening: Research Assistant – Advancing Community Voice in Oral Health Advocacy

NC Child is seeking a graduate student for this paid Research Assistant position to work directly with the Health Program Director. The Research Assistant will support data collection and analysis to improve advocacy by, with, and for families who rely on Medicaid for their oral health care.  

Deadline to apply: January 31, 2022. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until the position is filled, so interested students are encouraged to apply early.  

NEWS HEADLINES

Youth suicides on the rise in N.C., Child Fatality Task Force reports
North Carolina’s youth suicides increased by more than 50% from 2019 to 2020, according to the latest data from the state’s Child Fatality Task Force. - EdNC

Report: 'Build Back Better' Could Shrink NC Health Coverage Gap
Many low-income North Carolinians without health insurance would quality for 'zero-dollar' out-of-pocket health coverage under a new proposal in the Build Back Better Act. - Public News Service

Amid Push to Vaccinate Children, Other Challenges Deluge Pediatricians
At one clinic serving low-income children in Charlotte, treatment for health problems that have gone unchecked during the pandemic is more in demand than coronavirus shots. - The New York Times

‘It’s a hotel,’ not a clinical facility, ex-medical director says of Garner psych center State inspections show the Garner facility was also cited this year for  for placing three boys ages 13 to 16 in restraints without notifying staff doctors and for having no master treatment plans for eight boys. - The News & Observer

Democrats’ Bill Would Go Far Toward ‘Patching the Holes’ in Health Coverage  
Taken together, the provisions in the social policy bill represent the biggest step toward universal coverage since the passage of the Affordable Care Act. - New York Times

‘Our Brown Boy Joy’ doll line inspiring Black youth all over the world

Meet Demetrius Davis Jr., also known as Little Dee. The 9-year-old executive created a plush doll after not seeing enough representation in the media.

“My Friend is a company started to empower and impact brown boys,” said Davis. Read more.