The good, the bad, and the bitter: The FY23 Omnibus Package
CHN Staff,
December 20, 2022
Senate and House negotiators managed to include some important initiatives in the omnibus end-of-year funding package that will help millions of people withstand hunger and receive health care. More people will get help with home heating or cooling, urgently needed as temperatures plummet and home energy costs rise. There are increases for Head Start and child care. But because of the intransigence of Minority Leader McConnell and some in his caucus, a lot of good that could have been done for people nationwide was thwarted, and some of the good that was included was there only because other cuts were imposed. This is a Grinch-y approach to the nation’s needs.
COVID-19 Watch: Tracking Hardship, December 16, 2022
CHN Staff,
December 16, 2022
The appropriations edition. During the next few days, leaders in Congress will try to hammer out an agreement on an omnibus appropriations bill for FY 2023. We don’t yet know the total for domestic funding, or how specific programs will fare. But there is one thing we do know, and we know it emphatically. We know that for the past 12 years, human needs programs have been starved of funding – and now, Congress has an opportunity to address this.
Across the country, more calls for an expanded Child Tax Credit
David Elliot,
December 16, 2022
For the past few months, Voices for Human Needs has reported on renewed efforts throughout the U.S. to urge Congress to once again expand the Child Tax Credit. As Congress rushes to complete its work before year's end, the expansion efforts have increased in volume and urgency. Over the past weeks, CHN has worked in an additional seven states with local leaders, children's advocates and frontline service providers to explain to the public the tremendous need and rationale for an expanded CTC.
New report: 15 million Americans could lose Medicaid in 2023. Congress must act.
David Elliot,
December 15, 2022
A report released Thursday by prominent human needs advocacy groups warns that unless Congress takes action, 15 million people could lose Medicaid coverage after the Biden Administration ends the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency. The report was co-issued by the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum, the Coalition on Human Needs, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the NAACP, the National Urban League, and UnidosUS.
Congress: Help struggling families before it’s too late
CHN Staff,
December 7, 2022
Right around the time I heard lawmakers were considering a year-end package of tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations, my 12-year-old son’s bike broke. It felt like just another thing I couldn’t fix for him. Yet here are our lawmakers “fixing” things for those with the fewest problems. That’s unacceptable when there are so many ordinary families who need help.
