Congressman Danny Davis and Health Resources and Services Administration Administrator Carole Johnson visited the Primo Center for Women and Children in Chicago this month to promote the importance of the agency’s HRSA Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program.

Rep. Danny Davis (purple mask, fifth from left) and HRSA Administrator Carole Johnson (sixth from left) meet with Chicago families

The program “has made a real, measurable difference in the lives of children and families in my community in Chicago and across the country,” said Davis, who is chairman of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Worker and Family Support. The subcommittee is crafting legislation to reauthorize and extend the home visiting program, which is set to expire next month. “Continuing these life-transforming programs and bringing them to more families is a critical priority for me,” Davis said.

The Home Visiting Program provides expectant parents and parents with young children living in communities that face barriers to care and services with critical in-home and community supports from early language development to safe infant sleep practices to parenting skill-building. Families choose to participate in home visiting programs, and partner with health, social service, and child development professionals to set and achieve goals that improve their health and well-being.

“We stand ready to continue to support [Davis’] efforts,” said Johnson, “and thank the home visitors and families who shared their stories today about the importance of this program for Illinois’ children.”

The Illinois Department of Human Services recently restructured to align state funding streams with the program. “This consolidation has allowed Illinois to better target funding to at-risk communities, support higher program quality, and strengthen community systems development, said Kirsten Chernawsky, who directs the department’s Division of Early Childhood. “Illinois has been recognized nationally as a leader in home visiting,” she noted, “thanks to a system that supports a variety of evidence-based models and innovative practices.”

“The Home Visiting Program that HRSA administers in partnership with the State of Illinois and community-based organizations across the state is vital to the healthy development of Illinois’ children,” said Johnson.

More about HRSA’s Home Visiting program

More about Home Visiting in Illinois