December Newsletter: ‘Tis the Season
This holiday season, we invite you to support our mission to advance child health equity by contributing to our team’s work.
With your ongoing support, we will continue to make important progress for children, building on an incredible year of growth. In 2023, we co-sponsored five state bills focused on youth mental health, early childhood development, health care and housing justice. Two were signed into law, and we built momentum for the other three going into 2024. We forged new partnerships. We focused on community relationships. And, our diverse team expanded.
Our 2023 Impact Report evaluates our progress and shares highlights of our work this year.
We’ve accomplished so much this year:
- advancing a bold child health equity policy agenda,
- partnering with youth advocates to win key investments in youth mental health,
- having 400+ school administrators and advocates download our timely resources about Medi-Cal renewals, and
- directly listening to almost 400 families and youth to help inform our policy priorities.
Looking ahead to 2024, there are many unknowns in the potential changes to critical policies supporting the health and well-being of children, from the economy to the election. Despite this uncertainty, The Children’s Partnership’s vision remains clear: We are fully committed to advancing health equity for all children. We have always prided ourselves in the strength of our collaborative efforts to advance opportunity for children, and 2024 will be no different. There has never been a more important time for us to come together—a strong and diverse coalition that unites a number of different issues and experiences—to dedicate our resources to fight for the right of every child to have a healthy, bright future.
For over 30 years, through the hard work, passion and dedication of our staff, community partners and supporters, we have made real progress for children. We thank you for being with us every step of the way.
On behalf of our Board and staff, we wish you a wonderful holiday season! We look forward to working with you to improve the lives of children and families in 2024.
Keep Kids Covered: Sign On to Support Continuous Coverage
More than half of California’s children depend on Medi-Cal, and it is imperative that this crucial support remains accessible to them. Unfortunately, from June to October alone, 150,000 children experienced disenrollment from the program, primarily due to procedural reasons. Immediate action is necessary to prevent further loss of Medi-Cal coverage for children and families. In the short term, disenrollments should be paused. In the long term, continuous protections for Medi-Cal coverage must be implemented.
The Children’s Partnership, along with our collaborators in the Whole Child Equity Partnership and a broader network of allies, has sent three letters to Governor Gavin Newsom. Our objective is to persuade the governor to allocate funding and greenlight the implementation of continuous Medi-Cal coverage protections for young children in his FY24-25 budget.
For additional information:
- Learn more about how Medi-Cal continuous coverage protects California kids
- Read about TCP & partners urging governor to #KeepKidsCovered
- See direct feedback from California families
Housing Now! Retreat: Bringing A Children’s Health Lens to the Housing Justice Arena
Maddie Ribble, TCP’s Policy Director for Social Drivers of Health, joined 150 organizers and advocates at the annual Housing Now! California retreat December 6-7. Held at the First Congregational Church of Oakland, the retreat served as an opportunity to celebrate victories; strengthen connections; build trust across organizations, sectors and regions; and discuss and plan statewide campaigns for 2024.
TCP advocates for housing justice, recognizing that families with children—especially families of color—are most likely to experience housing insecurity and eviction. These challenges contribute to a range of negative health and economic outcomes for both children and caregivers. Housing Now! California is a statewide coalition and crucial partner for TCP, advocating for affordable rents, robust eviction protections, community control of land and housing, tenants’ rights to organize, and an end to financial speculation on land and homes.
Medi-Caid Feedback Loop Continues
TCP and NHeLP maintain an ongoing feedback loop with local organizations and navigators assisting families in the Medi-Cal renewal process. We disseminate updates and bring attention to issues raised by organizations, sharing their on-the-ground experiences with the Medi-Cal program. Assistants will also discuss best practices for overcoming challenges in the process.
Please extend this monthly feedback loop opportunity to your partners, and join our meetings in 2024 on the fourth Wednesday of each month at noon, starting with January 24. See you there!
Join Us at Building Transformational School Health for California’s Future
School-based health and wellness programs are key to building health and education equity for California’s children and youth. The California School-Based Health Alliance’s statewide School Health Conference in Santa Clara April 29-30 is an opportunity for health practitioners, educators and advocates to connect and learn how to best support students with increased access to health care at school. See details and register: bit.ly/CSHAconference.
