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The Legislator Nurse

State Representative Sara Gagliardi (D-Arvada) is proud to serve House District 27 in the Colorado House of Representatives. Check here for weekly updates of her activities, bills, town hall meetings, and other Capitol news.

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Colorado responds to Children with Special Needs

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Contributed by: Representative Sara Gagliardi on 2/13/2008

Families of children born in Colorado with birth defects access support services through the Colorado Responds to Children with Special Needs (CRCSN) Program. Unfortunately, budget cuts have forced a reduction in services and left many children and families without a guide to available health care resources.

The loss of revenue has left the program without the resources to provide vital services such as notification to women to give them information about how to prevent birth defects and responses to community inquiries about birth defect clusters.

I am well on my way to restoring funding for the program. The addition of 75 cents to the existing cost of a $17 birth certificate would fully restore funding to the CRCSN program. Colorado's birth certificate fees are currently in the middle range of states.

House Bill 1100, Funding for Children with Special Needs, passed the House today with a vote of 47 to 17 and now moves to the Senate for full consideration.

I told the house of representatives, "Many families have difficulty finding the right services when they learn their unborn child has Down syndrome, a cleft palate or autism. The Colorado Responds to Children with Special Needs program helps families get connected to services that can help in their time of need. It is a stressful time when a family learns their child has a birth defect or is delayed. Don't those parents deserve some peace of mind in knowing that someone will be by their side to guide them through the complex maze of services?"

Families with children born with special needs will once again be connected with support groups, developmental screenings and early intervention in their communities. The program estimates that 13% of births in Colorado, or 9,000 children, qualify for services through the program.

Organizations supporting the legislation include: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, March of Dimes, Mile High Down Syndrome Association, Fetal Alcohol Coalition, National Birth Defects Prevention Network, Colorado Perinatal Care Council, Folic Acid Task Force.

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Representative Sara Gagliardi

Denver , CO

Representative Sara Gagliardi has posted 1 blog entry and 0 comments since joining on 10/23/2007. Representative Sara Gagliardi 's average blog rating is 5.

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