New federal guidance calls for reducing the number of vaccines recommended for all children from 17 down to 11. At least 17 states have announced they’ll disregard it.
Universal access to transitional kindergarten in Los Angeles County coincided with more than 150 pre-K centers shutting their doors.
By paying and training preschool staff through a voter-approved real estate tax, the city aims to stabilize a workforce and expand access to child care.
States are reducing subsidy slots, slashing provider reimbursement rates and raising co-pays for low-income parents amid shrinking federal aid.
Governments are paying out billions to settle thousands of claims. There is no substitute for justice, but keeping the abuse from happening in the first place would be far more cost-effective.
California is set to adopt the nation’s first legal definition of ultra-processed foods, part of a growing red-blue wave targeting additives, dyes and school meals as childhood obesity rises.
The only state with such a program didn’t get there overnight. Years of action at the state Capitol and the ballot box set the stage. It’s a lesson for lawmakers in other states facing the fiscal challenges of providing services families need amid diminishing federal aid.
To balance budgets, states are trimming provider rates even before President Trump’s tax law strips $1 trillion in federal Medicaid support over 10 years.
The policy removes income limits, ensuring every family has access to free child care and strengthening the state’s early education system.
At least 92 children have died or narrowly escaped death since the reform raised thresholds for removal from parents. Legislators are weighing policy changes to prevent further tragedies.
State data reveals that 70 percent of infants live in areas without sufficient licensed care.
With around $45,000 per branch, libraries are offering family education and stress management workshops in counties where 70 percent of child welfare cases stem from economic hardship.
The city’s movement toward free care for kids up to age 2 could be a gamechanger with national implications. And it’s a sign of the growing political strength of working parents.
An agreement with federal agencies shields early-childhood programs from immigration status screening, avoiding potential closures and preserving services for more than 4,700 vulnerable children.
States are taking a look at tax credits, cost-sharing, regulation reductions and more as they look to support families and their economies.
The 2023-24 school year saw the highest percentage of kindergarteners exempted from vaccinations, with increases in 40 states and Washington, D.C. In some localities, the so-called health freedom message has led to nonmedical exemption rates as high as 50 percent.
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