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U.S. budget deals grants $1.5 billion for opioid-addicted babies, families
Source: Reuters
#POLITICS FEBRUARY 9, 2018 / 11:56 AM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO
U.S. budget deals grants $1.5 billion for opioid-addicted babies, families
Duff Wilson, John Shiffman
4 MIN READ
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. budget deal adopted by Congress on Friday includes what advocates call a landmark compromise to provide an estimated $1.5 billion over 10 years to try to keep struggling families together, including those with babies born dependent on opioids.
The provision allows assistance on mental health, substance abuse and parenting whenever any child is deemed at imminent risk of entering foster care. It also offers support for relatives who unexpectedly assume responsibility for a child when a parent cannot.
The funding is part of a bipartisan budget deal passed by lawmakers which alleviates spending fights that marked President Donald Trump’s first year in office, but sets the stage for a battle over immigration and exploding deficits ahead of November’s congressional elections.
The measure is intended to help newborns whose mothers were addicted to opioids, including heroin, during pregnancy.
More than 110 babies died between 2010 and 2015 after being born opioid-dependent and sent home with parents ill-equipped to care for them, a 2015 Reuters investigation found.
-snip-
U.S. budget deals grants $1.5 billion for opioid-addicted babies, families
Duff Wilson, John Shiffman
4 MIN READ
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. budget deal adopted by Congress on Friday includes what advocates call a landmark compromise to provide an estimated $1.5 billion over 10 years to try to keep struggling families together, including those with babies born dependent on opioids.
The provision allows assistance on mental health, substance abuse and parenting whenever any child is deemed at imminent risk of entering foster care. It also offers support for relatives who unexpectedly assume responsibility for a child when a parent cannot.
The funding is part of a bipartisan budget deal passed by lawmakers which alleviates spending fights that marked President Donald Trump’s first year in office, but sets the stage for a battle over immigration and exploding deficits ahead of November’s congressional elections.
The measure is intended to help newborns whose mothers were addicted to opioids, including heroin, during pregnancy.
More than 110 babies died between 2010 and 2015 after being born opioid-dependent and sent home with parents ill-equipped to care for them, a 2015 Reuters investigation found.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-congress-opioids/u-s-budget-deals-grants-1-5-billion-for-opioid-addicted-babies-families-idUSKBN1FT2F9
