A number of U.S. agencies have been charged with promoting and protecting child health and well-being. These agencies have historically operated programs that, although beneficial, run in parallel, rather than functioning as parts of an integrated system. This report finds that there is growing recognition that federally-funded children’s programs could benefit from information-sharing, cross-agency coordination, and increased cooperation.
Commissioned by First Focus, the California Endowment, Nemours, and Voices for America’s Children and authored by NORC at the University of Chicago – an independent, objective non-profit research organization – this report sets forth a series of strategies, grounded in research, that may improve the design, implementation, and evaluation of all children’s programs, including new programs included in the health reform legislation known as the Affordable Care Act.