BILL ANALYSIS
C.S.S.B. 1343
By: Ellis
Health and Human Services
4-20-95
Committee Report (Substituted)
BACKGROUND
In Texas, many children are regularly and severely mistreated by
family members or family acquaintances, and reports of child abuse
in this state continue to rise.
Early treatment of child abuse has been shown to be a cost
effective, pro-active measure that not only helps and prevents
further harm to victims, but also prevents revictimization and
intergenerational transmission of abuse.
Hawaii has established a child abuse prevention program called
Healthy Start/Healthy Families, with a success rate of well over 95
percent among program participants.
PURPOSE
As proposed, C.S.S.B. 1343 requires the Texas Department of Health
to establish a healthy start/healthy families program to provide
services to families and children during the prenatal period, from
birth through five years of age, or both.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is granted
to the Texas Board of Health under SECTION 1 (Section 46.007, Title
2B, Health and Safety Code) of this bill.
SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS
SECTION 1. Amends Title 2B, Health and Safety Code, by adding
Chapter 46, as follows:
CHAPTER 46. HEALTHY START/HEALTHY FAMILIES PROGRAM
Sec. 46.001. DEFINITIONS. Defines "family assessment
process," "family assessment worker," "family support worker,"
"home-based family support services," and "program."
Sec. 46.002. HEALTHY START/HEALTHY FAMILIES PROGRAM. (a)
Requires the Texas Department of Health (department) to
establish a healthy start/healthy families pilot program
(program) modeled after the Hawaii healthy start program to
provide services to families and children during the prenatal
period, from birth through five years of age, or both.
Requires the department, subject to the availability of
funding, to establish the pilot program in five communities of
varying population size.
(b) Provides that the goal of the program is to prevent
child abuse and neglect. Requires the program to be
designed to promote optimal child development, improve
family coping skills and functioning, promote positive
parenting skills and intrafamilial interaction, ensure 100
percent immunization rates, and increase school readiness.
(c) Requires the program to provide family and children's
services, home-based family support, and referral to
community services and to individuals providing those
services.
(d) Requires the program to be administered by a grant
recipient selected under Section 46.007.
Sec. 46.003. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES. Sets forth the goals of the
program.
Sec. 46.004. HEALTH FACILITIES ASSESSMENTS; FAMILY ASSESSMENT
PROCESS. (a) Requires the program to provide systematic
clinic-based or hospital-based assessment of all births in the
target area in selected counties.
(b) Requires an assessment to be accomplished by a family
assessment worker who visits briefly with the parents and
obtains written permission to examine patient records to
assess if there are obvious environmental stresses that
would warrant a full assessment interview.
(c) Requires a family assessment worker, if a full
assessment is warranted, to visit with the parents to
determine the type of support the family needs, and to
explain and encourage participation in the program.
(d) Requires the family assessment worker, before the family
elects to participate in the program, to inform the
participants of their rights concerning involvement in the
program, and to fully disclose the support services the
program offers.
Sec. 46.005. FAMILY SUPPORT WORKER. (a) Requires the program
to provide home-based family support services to families who
accept the services under Section 46.004.
(b) Requires the services provided under this section to
include home visits by a family support worker to assess the
needs of the family and to refer the family to appropriate
services. Requires the family support worker to identify
the specific needs of the family in order to ensure that
appropriate services are used and that the services are used
with appropriate frequency. Requires the family support
worker to coordinate the use of these services.
(c) Requires the family support worker to assist
participating families in selecting a primary health care
provider to promote preventive health care and positive
child development. Requires the family support worker to
monitor the scheduling and completion of health care visits
and the availability of transportation for the visits,
review the results of the visits, and coordinate future
visits or referrals to necessary services.
(d) Requires the family support worker to provide continuous
follow-up with the family until the child born at the time
the family accepts the services under Section 46.004 reaches
the age of six.
Sec. 46.006. TRAINING PROGRAM. Requires the program to
provide a structured training program with trainers certified
by the Hawaii healthy start training program. Requires the
training program to establish uniform standards for delivery
of services under this chapter.
Sec. 46.007. GRANT. (a) Requires the Texas Board of Health
(board), subject to the availability of funds appropriated by
the legislature, to adopt rules governing the establishment of
a grant to a community agency or nonprofit organization, which
serves youths and has experience in providing child abuse
prevention services or related services, for the development
and implementation of the program.
(b) Authorizes a local governmental unit or a private entity
to provide matching funds to a grant recipient under this
section.
Sec. 46.008. DUTIES OF GRANT RECIPIENT. Requires the
recipient of the grant under Section 46.007 to implement the
program as required by this chapter and collaborate with
existing community programs and services to implement the
program.
Sec. 46.009. EVALUATION OF PROGRAM. Requires the department
to conduct or arrange for an independent evaluation of the
program based on the Hawaii healthy start program evaluation
guidelines. Requires the department to make recommendations
on further implementation of the program.
SECTION 2. Requires the healthy start/healthy families program
required by Chapter 46, Health and Safety Code, as added by this
Act, to begin operations not later than January 1, 1996.
SECTION 3. Emergency clause.
Effective date: upon passage.