64EC76C78E868D4A8725846D0068F143 Hearing Summary

Senator Pettersen reconvened the meeting.

Jade Woodard, Illuminate Colorado, presented on families affected by SUD.  She referred to a PowerPoint during her presentation ( https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/committees/2017/isc_illuminate_9.6.19.pdf ). She spoke about the issues parents who are in recovery face when caring for their families. She spoke about the recommendations Illuminate has to support families in recovery, including: access to transitional housing for families; peer recovery supports; and consistency in the definition of medical necessity.  She discussed revising the Children' Code definition of child abuse to exclude the positive testing of a controlled substance as an indication of child abuse.  She also suggested creating home visitation and navigation supports.  Ms. Woodard discussed concerns related to drug testing of newborns as a determinate for subsequent child abuse.

Dr. Kathryn Wells, Kempe Center for Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect, presented on the issue of drug affected babies. She discussed the legacy of the Kempe Center. She discussed expanding local capacity for identifying needs, treatment, prevention, and integration.

Dan Makelky, Colorado Counties, Inc., discussed the ways counties help parents struggling with SUD and the importance of a supportive network in creating an environment for recovery and sobriety. He also discussed the activities and treatment options county departments of human services provide to youth in the youth corrections system.  He recommended using evidence based SUD treatment models for adolescents. He stated that about 60 percent of families in the child welfare system are impacted by SUD.

Ruby Richards, Douglas County Department of Human Services, spoke about the reasons why the child welfare system does not initially track SUD issues in a family.  Committee discussion followed about how data related to substance abuse would be useful to inform policy decisions and help identify the kind of services the state should offer to this population. Concerns about stigmatizing families by identifying a SUD followed. Committee discussion continued.

Mr. Makelky spoke about the need for increased services for families struggling with SUD. The committee discussed using data to inform county departments of human services about how to build capacity for services.

Dr. Wells discussed issues related to foster kids who are receiving services and who lose services when they move in and out of the system. The committee discussed issues related to paying for care and creating a system that provides a continuum of care.  The committee discussed the idea of creating a child welfare regional accountable entity (RAE) to provide children in the child welfare system a continuum of care.