National

  • Child Health

    The Senate Promised to Focus on Kids in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package. Here’s What They Should Do

    The Senate returned to work in Washington this week promising to act on additional COVID-19 relief legislation that their Republican leadership says will be focused on “bringing back jobs and making sure we take care of our kids.” But for more than two months, as children and families suffered, with Black families and other families of color disproportionately losing their lives and livelihoods to this crisis, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) “hit pause” on additional relief legislation and refused to take up the HEROES Act passed by the House of Representatives in mid-May, which builds on the groundwork laid by previous coronavirus relief packages to ease the damaging health and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the Senate considers additional relief legislation this week, they must prioritize the needs of children and families

    | National

  • Education

    CDF Urges Congress to Include Robust Education and Health Funding in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package

    we urge Congress to include robust funding for education in the next legislative package in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, we urge at least $200 billion in additional funding for K-12 education and programs that support marginalized students that are most likely to be affected by missing in-person instruction. Money must be available to all schools regardless of their timeline for reopening. Schools in areas with high rates of COVID-19 spread may need to consider delaying a return to fulltime in-person instruction, and these schools will need the same or greater federal investments, not fewer. In addition, we strongly urge Congress to increase the federal government’s share of Medicaid costs by raising the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) at least another 5.8 percentage points.

  • Youth Justice

    We Must Protect Our Children in the Criminal Justice System Amid the Pandemic and Beyond

    The roughly 44,000 incarcerated children across the country are living in fear of COVID-19 and are facing solitary confinement as a form of social distancing, limited access to PPE, limited or no visitations or contact with loved ones, and limited educational and recreational activities. This is cruelty, not rehabilitation, and our nation’s leaders must take action to protect our children. 

    | National

  • Child Poverty

    Nearly 170 Organizations Call for Congress to Include the Pandemic TANF Assistance Act in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package

    We urge Congress to demonstrate their commitment to addressing systemic poverty and racial, and gender disparities by including the Pandemic TANF Assistance Act in the next COVID-19 legislative package. The emergency grant program included in this bill would help families and children, especially families of color, meet their basic needs and is an essential part of more significant action and assistance needed for our most vulnerable.

  • Child Poverty

    Millions of Children Could Lose Their Homes if Congress Fails to Act

    The scale of the COVID-19 crisis is already staggering, but what comes next could be even more significant: Unless Congress provides robust housing assistance and fully extends the eviction moratorium to cover more families, more than 20 million people will be at risk of eviction by the end of September—disproportionately Black and Latinx renters—making housing and racial justice a key concern for our communities and Congress.

    | National

  • Health

    CDF Urges Congress to Enhance Medicaid FMAP to Provide Needed Health Care Services to Families

    Given the magnitude of both the public health and economic crises the nation continues to face, state and local governments need more support to provide health care services to individuals and families. We urge Congress to provide an additional FMAP increase of at least 5.8 percentage points, be retroactive to January 1, 2020, and remain until September 30, 2021, regardless of unemployment conditions. After September 30, 2021, the 12 percent FMAP increase should not be reduced until the national unemployment rate falls below 5 percent. In addition, we request additional FMAP increases be determined based on the increase in a state’s unemployment rate.