By: Ellis, Gallegos S.B. No. 1343 Truan A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT 1-1 relating to the establishment and operation of a healthy 1-2 start/healthy families program. 1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-4 SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 2, Health and Safety Code, is 1-5 amended by adding Chapter 46 to read as follows: 1-6 CHAPTER 46. HEALTHY START/HEALTHY FAMILIES PROGRAM 1-7 Sec. 46.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: 1-8 (1) "Family assessment process" means a method for: 1-9 (A) determining the level of stress families are 1-10 experiencing and the factors contributing to their stress; 1-11 (B) assessing the family need for supportive 1-12 services and parenting education; and 1-13 (C) referring families to the healthy 1-14 start/healthy families program or to other resources appropriate to 1-15 the family's needs. 1-16 (2) "Family assessment worker" means a person trained 1-17 by a certified healthy start/healthy families trainer who 1-18 implements and facilitates the family assessment process. 1-19 (3) "Family support worker" means a person providing 1-20 home-based family support services who is trained by certified 1-21 healthy start/healthy families trainers. 1-22 (4) "Home-based family support services" means 1-23 services to provide pregnant women and new parents with information 2-1 and access to health care, social services, and related services 2-2 through home visits by family support workers trained by certified 2-3 healthy start/healthy families trainers. 2-4 (5) "Program" means the healthy start/healthy families 2-5 program established under this chapter. 2-6 Sec. 46.002. HEALTHY START/HEALTHY FAMILIES PROGRAM. 2-7 (a) The department shall establish a healthy start/healthy 2-8 families pilot program modeled after the Hawaii healthy start 2-9 program to provide services to single mothers and their children 2-10 during the prenatal period, from birth through five years of age, 2-11 or both. Subject to the availability of funding, the department 2-12 shall establish the pilot program in five communities of varying 2-13 population size. 2-14 (b) The goal of the program is to prevent child abuse and 2-15 neglect. The program shall be designed to: 2-16 (1) promote optimal child development; 2-17 (2) improve family coping skills and functioning; 2-18 (3) promote positive parenting skills and 2-19 intrafamilial interaction; 2-20 (4) ensure 100 percent immunization rates; and 2-21 (5) increase school readiness. 2-22 (c) The program shall provide: 2-23 (1) family and children's services during the prenatal 2-24 period, from birth through five years of age, or both; 2-25 (2) home-based family support; and 3-1 (3) referral to community services and referral to 3-2 individuals providing those services. 3-3 (d) The program shall be administered by a grant recipient 3-4 selected under Section 46.007. 3-5 Sec. 46.003. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES. The goals of the program 3-6 established under this chapter are to: 3-7 (1) decrease the number of families reported for child 3-8 abuse or neglect during program participation; 3-9 (2) decrease the risk factors for child abuse or 3-10 neglect in families participating in the program; 3-11 (3) improve the handling of family-related stress and 3-12 decrease the number of emergency requests to the program by 3-13 families participating in the program; 3-14 (4) improve bonding relationships in families 3-15 participating in the program; 3-16 (5) fully immunize infants participating in the 3-17 program not later than two years of age; 3-18 (6) provide a family participating in the program with 3-19 an individualized family support plan not later than the 45th day 3-20 after the family joins the program; 3-21 (7) assist a family participating in the program in 3-22 accessing needed community resources as stated in their family 3-23 support plan; 3-24 (8) enable a family participating in the program to 3-25 access community services without assistance before leaving the 4-1 program; 4-2 (9) increase the number of infants in families 4-3 participating in the program who receive well-child visits; and 4-4 (10) increase the number of families participating in 4-5 the program who are involved in parent support groups or parent 4-6 education activities. 4-7 Sec. 46.004. HEALTH FACILITIES ASSESSMENTS; FAMILY 4-8 ASSESSMENT PROCESS. (a) The program shall provide systematic 4-9 clinic-based or hospital-based assessment of all births to single 4-10 mothers in the target area in selected counties. 4-11 (b) An assessment shall be accomplished by a family 4-12 assessment worker who visits briefly with the parents and obtains 4-13 written permission to examine patient records to assess if there 4-14 are obvious environmental stresses that would warrant a full 4-15 assessment interview. 4-16 (c) If a full assessment is warranted, the family assessment 4-17 worker shall visit with the parents to determine the type of 4-18 support the family needs, if any, and explain and encourage 4-19 participation in the program. 4-20 (d) Before the family elects to participate in the program, 4-21 the family assessment worker shall inform the participants of their 4-22 rights concerning involvement in the program and shall fully 4-23 disclose the support services the program offers. 4-24 Sec. 46.005. FAMILY SUPPORT WORKER. (a) The program shall 4-25 provide home-based family support services to families who accept 5-1 the services under Section 46.004. 5-2 (b) The services provided under this section shall include 5-3 home visits by a family support worker to assess the needs of the 5-4 family and to refer the family to appropriate services. The family 5-5 support worker shall identify the specific needs of the family to 5-6 ensure that appropriate services are used and that the services are 5-7 used with the appropriate frequency. The family support worker 5-8 shall coordinate the use of these services. 5-9 (c) The family support worker shall assist participating 5-10 families in selecting a primary health care provider to promote 5-11 preventive health care and positive child development. The family 5-12 support worker shall: 5-13 (1) monitor the scheduling and completion of health 5-14 care visits and the availability of transportation for the visits; 5-15 (2) review the results of the visits; and 5-16 (3) coordinate future visits or referrals to necessary 5-17 services. 5-18 (d) The family support worker shall provide continuous 5-19 follow-up with the family until the child born at the time the 5-20 family accepts the services under Section 46.004 reaches the age of 5-21 six. 5-22 Sec. 46.006. TRAINING PROGRAM. The program shall provide a 5-23 structured training program with trainers certified by the Hawaii 5-24 healthy start training program. The training program shall 5-25 establish uniform standards for delivery of services under this 6-1 chapter. 6-2 Sec. 46.007. GRANT. (a) Subject to the availability of 6-3 funds appropriated by the legislature, the board shall adopt rules 6-4 governing the establishment of a grant to a community agency or 6-5 nonprofit organization serving youths that has experience in 6-6 providing child abuse prevention services or related services for 6-7 the development and implementation of the program. 6-8 (b) A local governmental unit or a private entity may 6-9 provide matching funds to a grant recipient under this section. 6-10 Sec. 46.008. DUTIES OF GRANT RECIPIENT. The recipient of 6-11 the grant under Section 46.007 shall: 6-12 (1) implement the program as required by this chapter; 6-13 and 6-14 (2) collaborate with existing community programs and 6-15 services to implement the program. 6-16 Sec. 46.009. EVALUATION OF PROGRAM. The department shall 6-17 conduct or arrange for an independent evaluation of the program 6-18 based on the Hawaii healthy start program evaluation guidelines. 6-19 The department shall make recommendations on further implementation 6-20 of the program. 6-21 SECTION 2. The healthy start/healthy families program 6-22 required by Chapter 46, Health and Safety Code, as added by this 6-23 Act, shall begin operations not later than January 1, 1996. 6-24 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 6-25 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 7-1 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 7-2 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 7-3 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, 7-4 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its 7-5 passage, and it is so enacted.