REFERENCE TITLE: nurse-home visitation; program; appropriations

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-sixth Legislature

First Regular Session

2023

HB 2053

Introduced by

Representative Bliss

An Act

establishing an evidence-based nurse-home visitor grant program; appropriating monies.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Department of child safety; evidence-based nurse-home visitor grant program; requirements; annual report; delayed repeal

A. The evidenced-based nurse-home visitor grant program is established in the department of child safety to prevent child maltreatment and neglect, improve maternal and child health, including child development, and promote families' economic mobility. The department shall award the grant monies to at least one eligible organization to provide voluntary, evidence-based nurse-home visiting services for a three-year period, including assessments and screenings, care coordination, case management, preventive education and counseling, nurse-delivered interventions and referrals to health and human services, educational or job development resources, and other appropriate supports, to first-time low-income, expectant mothers who voluntarily enroll before their third trimester. The evidence-based nurse-home visiting services shall be available through the second birthday of children born to participating new mothers.

B. Organizations that are eligible to receive a grant pursuant to this section include public and private entities, nonprofit organizations, county and other local government entities and tribal nations.

C. When determining which organizations shall be awarded monies through the grant program, the department shall give preference to organizations that meet all of the following:

1. Are working and providing services in this state.

2. Can demonstrate either delivery as of December 31, 2022 or capacity to begin delivery, within ninety days after receiving the grant award, of a service delivered by registered nurses that meets the criteria established by the United States department of health and human services for an evidence-based early childhood home visiting service delivery model with favorable impacts found for reductions in child maltreatment and, as of January 1, 2023, and that is ranked as a "well-supported" service in the federal title IV-E prevention services clearinghouse to prevent foster care placements and provide enhanced support to children and families through in-home parenting skill-based services.

3. Limit program enrollees to first-time expectant mothers who voluntarily enroll before the twenty-eighth week of their pregnancy.

4. Provide services to program enrollees and their children from early prenatal enrollment through the child's second birthday.

5. Employ licensed registered nurses that have received, or are actively pursuing, a bachelor of science in nursing degree to provide services.

6. Provide services in the enrollee's home, via telehealth or at another location as directed by the enrollee.

D. An organization that receives monies pursuant to this section shall submit to the department of child safety data collected as standard practice in the course of service delivery and as prescribed by the department related to all of the following:

1. Maternal and newborn health.

2. Child injuries, child maltreatment and emergency department visits for accidental injuries.

3. Child development and school readiness.

4. Exposure to crime or domestic violence.

5. Family economic self-sufficiency.

6. Coordination with and referrals to other community resources and supports.

E. On or before August 1 of 2024, 2025, 2026 and 2027, the department shall publish a report that includes all of the following information for the previous year:

1. The number of grants awarded under the program, the recipient organizations and number of participants expected to be served.

2. The number of newly enrolled participants.

3. The number of visits each grant recipient made to enrolled participants.

4. Other data and information received under subsection D of this section related to measures of health and well-being of participants and their children participating in the program as deemed necessary by the department.

F. This section is repealed from and after December 31, 2027.

Sec. 2. Appropriations; department of child safety; evidence-based nurse-home visitor grant program; exemption

A. The sum of $15,000,000 and ___ FTE positions are appropriated from the state general fund in fiscal year 2023-2024 to the department of child safety for the purposes of administering the evidence-based nurse-home visitor grant program to deliver evidence-based nurse-home visiting services. The department may use up to $_______ of the monies appropriated to administer the grant program.

B. The appropriations made in subsection A of this section are exempt from the provisions of section 35-190, Arizona Revised Statutes, relating to lapsing of appropriations. Any unspent monies remaining on January 1, 2028 shall revert to the state general fund.

Sec. 3. Legislative findings

The legislature finds and declares the following:

1. That new mothers, in order to adequately care for their newborns and young children, often benefit from voluntarily receiving professional assistance and information.

2. That without this assistance and information, a first-time mother may develop habits or practices that are detrimental to her health and well-being and to the health and well-being of her child.

3. That inadequate prenatal care and inadequate care in infancy and early childhood often inhibit a child's ability to learn and develop throughout childhood and may have lasting, adverse effects on the child's ability to function as an adult.

4. That the implementation of a United States department of health and human services-accredited evidenced-based nurse-home visiting program for first-time mothers, which is ranked as "well-supported" in the federal title IV-E prevention services clearinghouse for in-home parent skill-based services under the family first prevention services act as of January 1, 2023, provides educational, health and other resources for first-time mothers from early pregnancy through the first two years of their infants' lives and has been proven to significantly reduce the risk of preterm birth, the amount of drug use, including nicotine and alcohol use and abuse by first-time mothers, the occurrence of criminal activity committed by mothers and their children under fifteen years of age, and the number of reported incidents of child abuse and neglect.

5. That the program has been proven to reduce the mother's need for other forms of public assistance and to increase the mother's educational attainment and employment.