The Health and Human Resources Committee met this afternoon.
Committee Hearing
House Bill 2776 requires positive results of alpha-gal syndrome to be reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some states already report alpha-gal to the CDC. Alpha-gal is caused by a tick, usually a Lone Star tick. The body develops antibodies against the alpha-gal. The alpha-gal can cause an allergy to a sugar molecule in red meat and other mammal products. Reporting will help track how widespread the disease is in the state.
House Bill 2598 requires parents and guardians to participate in programs for juveniles in an out-of-home placement.
House Bill 2349 requires licensed treatment programs to offer long-acting reversible contraception to female patients recovering from addition to new and current patients. The goal of providing this is to lower the number of children born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome.
House Bill 2503 improves the foster care clothing allowance program by providing reloadable purchasing cards.
House Bill 2377 requires reports to centralized intake for child welfare to be retained for at least 12 months, including audio files. The bill also provides the Foster Care Ombudsman access to reports. The bill updates child welfare data reporting. It also creates the Critical Incident Review Team to review fatalities and near fatalities involving children in the child welfare system.
House Bill 2027 updates the circumstances when a child may be removed from foster care. The bill changes the time to be a permanent placement from 18 months to 6 months. The goal of this is to prevent children from bouncing from foster home to foster home before reunification or adoption.
House Bill 2880 defines a “parent resource navigator” in code. It is an individual established through the Court Improvement Program or the Public Defender Services assisting a parent or parents through the requirements to be unified or reunified with their child or children.
House Bill 2934 requires the Department of Human Services to prioritize housing applications for foster children who have turned 18 years of age and are transitioning from foster care.
