(a) The Commissioner of Early Childhood shall establish the structure for a state-wide system for a Nurturing Families Network, which demonstrates the benefits of preventive services by significantly reducing the abuse and neglect of infants and by enhancing parent-child relationships through hospital-based assessment with home outreach follow-up on infants and their families within families identified as high risk.

(b) The commissioner shall: (1) Develop the comprehensive risk assessment to be used by the Nurturing Families Network's providers; (2) develop the training program, standards, and protocols for the pilot programs; and (3) develop, issue and evaluate requests for proposals to procure the services required by this section. In evaluating the proposals, the commissioner shall take into consideration the most effective and consistent service delivery system allowing for the continuation of current public and private programs.

(c) The commissioner shall establish a data system to enable the programs to document the following information in a standard manner: (1) The level of screening and assessment; (2) profiles of risk and family demographics; (3) the incidence of child abuse and neglect; (4) rates of child development; and (5) any other information the commissioner deems appropriate.

(d) The commissioner shall report to the General Assembly, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, on the establishment, implementation and progress of the Nurturing Families Network, on July first of each year.

(e) The commissioner may expend an amount not to exceed two per cent of the amount appropriated for purposes of this section in a manner consistent with the provisions of section 10-509.

(P.A. 95-238, S. 1; P.A. 97-288, S. 2, 6; P.A. 05-246, S. 10; Sept. Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-5, S. 25; P.A. 13-247, S. 50; P.A. 15-143, S. 7; 15-227, S. 15; P.A. 18-184, S. 6.)

History: P.A. 97-288 amended Subsec. (b) by adding provision requiring the commissioner to establish three additional pilot sites, effective July 1, 1997; P.A. 05-246 replaced Commissioner of Children and Families with Children's Trust Fund Council and Healthy Families Connecticut program with Nurturing Families Network and made conforming and technical changes throughout, effective July 8, 2005; Sept. Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-5 amended Subsec. (a) to replace “is intended to demonstrate” with “demonstrates”, deleted former Subsecs. (b) and (c) re pilot programs, redesignated existing Subsecs. (d) to (f) as Subsecs. (b) to (d) and amended redesignated Subsec. (b) to replace “pilot programs” with “Nurturing Families Network's providers”, effective October 5, 2009; Sec. 17a-56 transferred to Sec. 17b-751b in 2010; P.A. 13-247 replaced references to Children's Trust Fund Council with references to executive director of the Office of Early Childhood and, in Subsec. (c)(5), replaced reference to Children's Trust Fund Council with reference to commissioner, effective July 1, 2013; P.A. 15-143 replaced references to executive director of the Office of Early Childhood with references to Commissioner of Early Childhood, effective June 30, 2015; P.A. 15-227 made technical changes and amended Subsec. (d) by deleting “January first and”, effective July 1, 2015; P.A. 18-184 added Subsec. (e) re commissioner may expend amount not to exceed 2 per cent of amount appropriated in manner consistent with Sec. 10-509, effective July 1, 2018.

See Sec. 17b-277a re program to inform Healthy Start applicants of Nurturing Families Network services.

Annotation to former section 17a-56:

Cited. 44 CS 551.