Child Abuse and Neglect

Maintain the number of at-risk parents receiving the Nurse-Family Partnership program.

This evidence-based program helps transform the lives of young, low-income, first-time mothers and

their children.  Each mother is voluntarily paired with a registered nurse early in her pregnancy and

receives ongoing nurse home visits that continue throughout her child’s second birthday.  The program

is proven to put these women on paths to self sufficiency.  Additionally, research has shown that the

program cuts child abuse and neglect rates in half, and by the time the babies in the program are age

15, rates of juvenile delinquency are also cut in half.  Lack of funding in Pennsylvania leaves the

Nurse-Family Partnership program only able to reach about 23 percent of eligible mothers.

Maintain current funding levels for the Nurse-Family Partnership program at $13.805

million. Current state funding for the program is $9.978 million, with an additional $3.827

million coming from federal dollars.  Federal funding rules now disallow Pennsylvania’s use

of this federal money for the program in the 2009-2010 state budget, so in order to maintain

the program’s reach, Pennsylvania needs to increase its investment to the full $13.805

million.