Did you know that California is currently considering 4 pieces of legislation that seek to address trauma and childhood adversity?
ACE's Connection members recently (July 2017) participated in a Policy Maker education Day on Childhood Adversity. Jessica Hackwell, Karen Clemmer, Carla Denner, Nick Dalton, and two youth from Sonoma County partnered with the California Campaign to Counter Childhood Adversity (4CA) to ensure our policy makers understand the terms "adversity," "trauma," and "resilience." Our ACEs Connection members also gave policy maker fact sheets on our local ACE rates, prevention efforts, and other details painting a picture of how our communities are deeply effected.
So what are the bills that may soon cross the desks of our newly educated policy members?
2017 CA AB-340 (Pending)
http://leginfo.legislature.ca....ll_id=201720180AB340
Requires trauma screening under the Medi-Cal Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment Program (EPSDT)
2017 CA AB-11
http://leginfo.legislature.ca....ill_id=201720180AB11
This bill would establish a grant program to support local partnerships that use a systems approach to deliver health, child welfare, early care and education, and social services. “The bill would require the partnership to, among other things, build, expand, and test innovative early childhood system approaches that effectively identify and serve children from birth to 3 years of age, inclusive, and their families, who are experiencing adverse childhood experience, and provide them with individualized services and support.”
2017 CA SB 191 (Pending): http://leginfo.legislature.ca....ll_id=201720180SB191
Text: Same link (see Section 1 (c)
Provide coordinated mental health services in schools for children to recover from traumatic experiences
Authorizes a county, or a qualified provider operating as part of the county mental health plan network, and a local educational agency to enter into a partnership to create a program that includes, among other things, targeted interventions for pupils with identified social-emotional, behavioral, and academic needs and an agreement to establish a Medi-Cal mental health and substance use disorder provider that is county operated or county contracted for the provision of mental health services. References when describing the link between early adversity and substance abuse [See Section 1 (c)]
2017 CA SB 18
http://leginfo.legislature.ca....ill_id=201720180SB18
Create a Bill of Rights for Children and Youth that would promote social and emotional skills, support parents, and otherwise buffer children from adversity and toxic stress
Nancy Vogl and some other Sonoma County ACEs Connection members may be forming a Policy Committee to track these bills and to continue to educate policy makers. Would you like to join this committee? Please leave a comment here and we'll connect you!
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