Support Nurse Home Visiting and WIC in Oregon!

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Support Nurse Home Visiting and WIC in Oregon!

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Dear Legislators,

I write to express my strong support for $10.2 million in state funding for early childhood programs in public health – specifically the Women Infants and Children (WIC) program and the nurse home visiting programs, Babies First and CaCoon.

Nurse home visiting has decades of evidence showing cost savings and long-term benefits, including reductions in child abuse and neglect, fewer emergency room visits and healthier parents and children. The same is true for the 50-year old federal WIC program, where families who participate have better nutrition, healthier babies and improved access to medical care. Federal funding does not fully cover the costs of either program, which leaves families in many Oregon counties waiting for benefits and services.

This funding will provide $6.2 million per biennium to match federal dollars for the CaCoon and Babies First (NHV) programs and $4 million for the WIC program.

CaCoon serves children with special health needs and Babies First serves pregnant women and children under five who have social, emotional and medical risk factors. WIC provides healthy foods, lactation support and resource referrals for over 100,000 Oregonians. These programs are critical for helping the youngest Oregonians grow and thrive.

The money will help counties hire more staff and raise salaries to prevent staff turnover, which will reduce waiting times for thousands of Oregon families.

I urge you to vote yes on CLHO’s $10.2 million request to support early childhood programs in public health.

Thank you for supporting these important public health programs.

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Budget Request: $10.2 Million

Nurse Home Visiting

Oregon has four public health nurse home visiting programs: Nurse Family Partnership, Family Connects, Babies First and CaCoon, each tailored to a different population. Visits start during pregnancy or shortly after a child is born and, depending on the family’s needs, can last a few weeks or several years. In the case of CaCoon, the program that serves children with special health needs, visits can continue until the child is an adult. The state matches Medicaid funding for Nurse Family Partnership and Family Connects program. This budget request will provide $6.2 million per biennium to match Medicaid funding for CaCoon and Babies First - ensuring that these programs can continue to help our youngest Oregonians grow and thrive!

Women Infants and Children

The federal WIC program provides food assistance, nutrition counseling and breastfeeding support to families across Oregon. Because federal funding does not cover the costs of running the program, some families wait weeks or months for services. Many counties can’t afford to hire additional staff and turnover is high because wages are not competitive. This request will provide $4 million per biennium to help counties hire more staff and increase salaries–allowing counties to reduce wait times and serve more eligible families.

More Information:

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Fact Sheet - WIC in Oregon

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Fact Sheet - Nurse Home Visiting

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All '25 Public Health Priorities

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Sun Mar 16 2025

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Priority 3