Now that the July 4^th congressional recess has ended, negotiations around the fourth major COVID relief bill are underway between the Congress and the Administration. How the chasm between Congress and the White House will be bridged is a path uncertain, with massive differences between the House and Senate complicating the work.

As the pandemic rages across the U.S., there is now at least a consensus that action is needed. But no agreement exists on a payroll tax cut, unemployment benefits, funding for vaccine disbursement, conditions for education funding, or money for testing. Senate leadership has focused on liability protections for business and providers and has dismissed the marker laid down by the House of Representatives with the passage of the HEROs bill (H.R. 6800) in mid-May. 

While there is wide coverage of these controversies by major news outlets, there are efforts behind the scenes to have trauma-related provisions included in the COVID legislation that don’t make it to mainstream media.  Here are a few highlights of what is going on:

—The Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice (CTIPP) is prioritizing support for local coordinating bodies to address the impact of stress and trauma in communities, increased funding for the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) and Project AWARE (a program of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration) to assist schools to implement trauma-informed initiatives and mental health supports for their students, additional funds to local education agencies and Head Start providers, and funding for the federal Interagency Task Force on Trauma- Informed Care created in Section 7132 of P.L. 115-271 (SUPPORT Act—opioid recovery and treatment).

Some of these provisions are contained in the “RISE from Trauma Act” (S.1770) introduced by Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) who is advancing them in the COVID negotiations. Co-sponsors of the RISE Act include Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). For information on the RISE Act (including a section-by-section attachment), click here. If you are interested in contacting your members of Congress about including trauma provisions in the final COVID bill, see CTIPP’s Call to Action for specific tips and guidance. For more about CTIPP’s focus and activities, see Anndee Hochman’s article “Power of Networks Tapped for National Trauma Campaign.”

—A coalition of over 30 organizations focused on trauma, the Child Trauma and ACEs Policy (CTAP) Working Group, is lending its support to requests forwarded by other organizations and  coalitions as well as asking for specific new provisions. They include requests related to home visiting, school mental health, youth workforce among others. In a letter to House and Senate leadership, CTAP makes the case for these program and funding requests in the current COVID crisis (here is the link to the entire letter):

“As the pandemic continues, we ask that you now invest resources to prevent and mitigate the lifelong effects of the trauma that many children are experiencing, while also addressing the disproportionate impact the virus is having on some families and communities. This is seen quite clearly in low-income communities of color throughout our country, who are not only much more likely to die from COVID-19, but also already suffer serious effects of trauma and experience severe adversity. We also ask that you give those working with children and youth the tools they need to navigate the trauma they and the children and families they work with are experiencing. By supporting programs that embed trauma-informed practices into already existing programs, we will build the capacity of communities and schools to meet the current needs of children and prevent the potentially devastating consequences of unaddressed trauma.”

The CTAP letter closes with this:

“Our country has faced unexpected tragedies before, but few, if any, have been so far reaching and touched so many so suddenly. For children, we know many of the consequences of what’s happening now will not be immediately visible, but they could be lifelong if we don’t act. By addressing trauma now, and preventing further trauma and violence through strategies that strengthen families and communities and promote social connection and wellbeing, we can ensure that our children will be able to thrive and succeed once the physical health crisis is contained.”

Included in the CTAP letter is a request to include trauma-informed care professional development for teachers and school staff as an eligible use of supplemental funds for SEAs and LEAs (state and local educational agencies) under future appropriations through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund established by the CARES Act (PL 116-136), or the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund'proposed in the HEROES Act. As reported in ACEs Connection, the HEROES Act contained trauma-informed language related to education and juvenile justice not included in other COVID bills.

CTAP organizations include CTIPP, Futures without Violence, Alliance for Strong Families and Communities, American Psychological Association, Prevent Child Abuse America, Saint Francis Ministries, Center for Community Resilience (at George Washington University) and others. 

Increasingly, people in the trauma-informed movement—survivors, researchers, clinicians, teachers, community leaders and others—recognize the importance of advocating for policy change at the local, state, and federal levels. They know that government can accelerate the movement by providing funding and creating incentives to take programs to scale, whether it is paying for trauma-focused treatment under government healthcare programs or supporting community initiatives to prevent and mitigate adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). 

The range of advocacy efforts is wide. It includes support for trauma-specific proposals but also campaigns to address structural issues such as economic inequality and racism, including income supports, universal health insurance coverage, voting rights, policing reform, gun violence reduction, and many others.  Advocates also understand the power of government to undermine policies and programs that support families and children. 

Fortunately, more and more organizations with missions to support children and families have incorporated ACEs science into their public policy agendas. They, along with specific ACEs coalitions at the local and state levels, are joining forces to promote these priorities.  Alliances are forged with all types of groups, from chambers of commerce to civil rights organizations, to address the broad structural issues as well as trauma-specific reforms.  The movement’s activism in public policy is still in its infancy but will mature quickly as we embrace the challenges in today’s political environment.

The power of ACEs science to improve the lives of children and families must be unleashed in all endeavors, including advocacy in public policy, especially now.