Accessibility menu
State Representative Carolyn Laine
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4331
For more information contact: Joan Nichols 651-29X-XXXX
Column/LTE
In Support of Families In Our Communities
Katherine Kersten's name-calling belies a fundamental refusal to deal with the real issues, preferring to smear the facts with innuendoes. My bill (HF 595) seeks to support, not control, families in our communities. It re-funds a home visiting statute already on the books; this is supported by Governor Pawlenty and is in his recommended budget. This program provides for coordination of existing programs in a community, focusing the services and the accountability. My bill would add a voluntary newborn visiting service that might be considered a "welcome wagon" approach, letting parents know what resources are available to assist them as they go about the important task of being the best family they can be.
I would suggest that Katherine Kersten remove her middle class glasses and see the world of newborns born into poverty. Every year, half the newborns in Ramsey County, for example, are delivered to "at risk" families where daily life is defined by poverty and lack. We must try to stop the perpetuation of lack - lack of healthy nurturance and lack of healthy brain development in turn can result in lack of academic success and hence lack of economic well-being. As a society, we need to deal with the issue of children born into difficult circumstances; we cannot afford the long-term costs of not doing so, costs in remedial education, crime control, and the care of the most needy.
News Items
- Rep. Laine Introduces Bill to Increase HMO Transparency - (Posted: 2012-02-13 00:00:00)
- New Law Gives Minnesotans a Natural Choice for Care of Deceased - (Posted: 2010-04-22 00:00:00)
- PROGRESS MADE IN 2009 SESSION, BUT MUCH MORE WORK AHEAD - (Posted: 2009-06-03 00:00:00)
- Archived News Items
- Subscribe to RSS News Feeds
- Read more about RSS.