Dear John,

In case you missed it...this week the Voices for Human Needs blog explores a new report by First Focus on Children that tracks federal spending on children's programs -- there's good news and bad. And we examine the importance of extending free school lunch for millions of schoolchildren. Finally, we unveil CHN's latest COVID-19 Watch: Tracking Hardship, a by-the-numbers look at how the pandemic harms the most vulnerable people and communities. Please share!

This week on the blog...

First Focus report: Federal spending on children rose sharply in 2021 but now has regressed
October 12
A child needs more than just food to grow. When children are deprived of food, shelter, and extracurriculars they fall behind their peers. How is a child who is going to bed hungry going to have the energy to pay attention in school? How is a child without a warm bed going to get enough sleep? How is a child not going to notice their crying parents at the kitchen table desperately trying to figure out how to survive? READ MORE »  

Extending free school lunch for millions: 'All that is lacking is political will'
October 13
Since I was a kindergartner up until I graduated high school, I ate free school lunch every single day. My single mother worked two jobs to keep me and my sister afloat. She would leave early in the morning and wouldn’t come back till late in the evening. Free school lunch was our lifeline. Growing up, I was unaware of the economic hardships my mother worked through. The only thing I knew is that I could go to school, and I could eat. My mother relied on the knowledge that for one meal of the day, she didn’t have to worry about paying or having the time to prepare it. She knew that while her daughters were at school, they were not going hungry because of free school meals. READ MORE

CHN's latest COVID-19 Watch: Tracking Hardship
October 14
The “twindemic” is coming edition. Health care professionals are bracing for a quadruple whammy this winter that is expected to severely test hospitals across the country. Already, flu cases are on the upswing throughout the U.S., and public health experts warn this could be the worst flu season in years. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of new COVID-19 cases continue to be reported daily. And on top of all this, many hospitals, particularly children’s hospitals, emergency rooms and pediatric units are dealing with what in some states is a flood of children sick with respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. READ MORE »

 

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