The Nebraska Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee heard testimony on LR154, introduced by State Senator Jen Day (District 49) to examine maternal care deserts in Nebraska and to highlight this critical issue in our state. State senators heard how...
Category: Maternal & Child Health
Policy Leadership Academy Class 5 is underway
The fifth class of the Nebraska Early Childhood Policy Leadership Academy is underway! Twenty-six citizen advocates met up for the first time in Ogallala for an orientation dinner and the first of five workshops. Representing Nebraska from the western border all the...
LB114 would increase federal funding for home visiting in NE
Kelly Crane has worked in the field of prevention and child welfare for more than 20 years and is the state policy specialist for Prevent Child Abuse America, a national organization dedicated to preventing child abuse and neglect. Healthy Families America is their...
LB75 data collection needed to address maternal health disparities in Nebraska
Nyomi Thompson is the Policy and Advocacy Manager at I Be Black Girl and focuses on uplifting birth justice and positive Black maternal health outcomes. She’s a Nebraska transplant, but has grown to love the state, and strives to improve the lives of the Black...
Early childhood bills to watch in the Nebraska Legislature
State senators introduced 812 bills in the first 10 days of this year’s legislative session, the highest number since 2001. First Five Nebraska has nine priority bills this year, and is following nearly 70 other Nebraska early childhood bills that could impact young...
LB75 will yield data to help reduce health crises during childbirth
Chad Abresch testified before the Nebraska Legislature’s HHS Committee in support of LB75, which allows the state Maternal Mortality Review team to review critical incidents during labor and delivery that threaten mother’s lives in the hope they can provide recommendations for prevention.
First Five Nebraska’s 2023 legislative priorities
Bill introduction in the Nebraska Legislature has concluded, and state senators introduced 812 bills during this first session of the two-year biennium. Each bill will be referred to a committee and receive a public hearing, and then may be advanced for debate by the...
Sara Brady joins First Five Nebraska as Data Analyst
We welcome Dr. Sara Brady to First Five Nebraska as Data Analyst. She pivoted into policy research after 10 years in academia and research consulting. In her previous roles, Sara trained countless students in rigorous quantitative methods and data analysis and...
Federal MIECHV reauthorization bill is introduced
Extensive research has shown us that children’s earliest experiences build the foundation that affects them for the rest of their lives. Parents are their children’s first and best caregivers and teachers during these early years, but they sometimes struggle with...
Home visiting benefits babies, families
[First Five Nebraska Policy Advisor Sara Howard testified before the Lincoln City Council in support of Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird's proposal to include home visiting in the city's annual budget. This blog is adapted from Howard's written testimony.] Healthy moms and...
Early development and the foundation of mental health
Last year, the American Academy of Pediatrics and national partners declared a national emergency in child and adolescent mental health. This declaration focused on the profound growth of mental health hazards associated with the global pandemic, including disruptions...
FFN to work on 5 legislative interim studies
First Five Nebraska will work with state senators on five interim studies this year. Interim studies, conducted annually after the Legislature adjourns its session sine die, give senators and legislative committees the opportunity to delve deeper into topics of policy...












