By Van de Putte H.B. No. 3057
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the home health visitor program and to the
1-3 establishment and operation of a healthy start/healthy families
1-4 program.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 2, Health and Safety Code, is
1-7 amended by adding Chapter 46 to read as follows:
1-8 CHAPTER 46. HEALTH START/HEALTHY FAMILIES PROGRAM
1-9 Sec. 46.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
1-10 (1) "Program" means the health start/healthy families
1-11 program established under this chapter.
1-12 (2) "Family support worker" means a person providing
1-13 home-based family support services.
1-14 (3) "Home-based family support services" means
1-15 services to provide pregnant women and new parents with information
1-16 and access to health care, social services, and related services
1-17 through home visits by workers trained in the Hawaii healthy start
1-18 model.
1-19 (4) "Early identification worker" means a person who
1-20 identifies program participants during the prenatal period or at
1-21 birth.
1-22 (5) "High risk" means at risk of child abuse or
1-23 neglect as determined by a valid and reliable assessment
2-1 instrument.
2-2 Sec. 46.002. HEALTHY START/HEALTHY FAMILIES PROGRAM. (a)
2-3 The department shall establish a healthy start/healthy families
2-4 program modeled after the Hawaii healthy start program to provide
2-5 services to families and children during the prenatal period, from
2-6 birth through five years of age, or both.
2-7 (b) The goal of the program is to prevent child abuse and
2-8 neglect. The program shall be designed to:
2-9 (1) promote optimal child development;
2-10 (2) improve family coping skills and functioning;
2-11 (3) promote positive parenting skills and
2-12 intrafamilial interaction;
2-13 (4) ensure 100 percent immunization rates; and
2-14 (5) increase school readiness.
2-15 (c) The program shall provide:
2-16 (1) family and children's services during the prenatal
2-17 period, from birth through five years of age, or both;
2-18 (2) home-based family support; and
2-19 (3) referral to community services and referral to
2-20 individuals providing those services.
2-21 (d) The program shall be administered by a grant recipient
2-22 selected under Section 46.003.
2-23 Sec. 46.003. GRANT. (a) The board shall adopt rules
2-24 governing the establishment of a grant to a community agency or
2-25 nonprofit organization serving youths that has experience in
3-1 providing child abuse prevention services for the development and
3-2 implementation of the program.
3-3 (b) The board shall adopt rules establishing the
3-4 responsibilities of the recipient.
3-5 (c) A local governmental unit or a private entity may
3-6 provide matching funds to a grant recipient under this section.
3-7 SECTION 2. The healthy start/healthy families program
3-8 required by Chapter 46, Health and Safety Code, as added by this
3-9 Act, shall begin operations not later that January 1, 1996.
3-10 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
3-11 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-12 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-13 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-14 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
3-15 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
3-16 passage, and it is so enacted.