© 2025 First 5 Center for Children’s Policy. All rights reserved.
Page 5 of 18
Now is a critical time to evaluate and improve California’s early identification and intervention (EII) system by leveraging the state’s existing county Help Me Grow (HMG) systems.
With the COVID-19 recession predicted to exceed the downturn of the Great Recession, cuts to many key services are expected, and one devastating outcome may be the further erosion of an already fragile system that serves infants and toddlers with developmental delays.
Pregnancy and the birth of a baby are significant occasions that also bring many challenges. Providing support to new parents and caregivers during this time, and through early childhood, is essential to give all children and families a strong start in life.
California should develop a strategy to collect and use kindergarten readiness data in every county and across the state, in order to improve school outcomes and direct funding for early childhood programs in the most effective way.
Visits, now conducted by phone or video call, can be a comfort and an escape from the everyday stresses of living and parenting during COVID-19.
As states begin easing stay-at-home orders and lifting restrictions on businesses and public spaces, home visitors, who have shifted to virtual visits during the pandemic, are thinking through how this will impact the field and their ongoing connections with families. To address some common concerns, the Rapid Response-Virtual Home Visiting Collaborative brought together representatives from several models for a Q&A session.
As we move into month four of state-wide shelter-in-place orders, California’s 1.4 million children ages zero to three are coming due for check-ups, and parents are navigating how to get their children preventive care during a pandemic.
© 2025 First 5 Center for Children’s Policy. All rights reserved.