KCHC March Newsletter

Kentucky Coalition For Healthy Children Newsletter

Issue 46 | March 2026

Working collaboratively on policies and practices in and around schools that promote equity and improve the physical, social, and emotional health and well-being of children, youth, and families.

The opinions and viewpoints expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect the positions of all coalition partners.

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KCHC Member Highlights

Children’s Advocacy Week | Happening now!

Kentucky Youth Advocate’s Children’s Advocacy Week is underway! It’s a time to amplify youth voices, connect with policymakers, and strengthen our commitment to advocacy for kids. There are a number of ways for advocates to take action for Kentucky kids. Take a look at the schedule for the rest of the week to see how you can get involved.

Webinar Series│ State & Federal Policy Updates

Join the ThriveKY Coalition’s webinar series for important updates on the economy, Medicaid, KCHIP, SNAP, housing, transportation, child care, public health, and behavioral health. A virtual program is being held on March 16. For more information about the series, CEUs, and how to register- click here.

Webinar | The Role of Place in Community Health

The Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky’s newest Health for a Change webinar will spotlight place-based health. The free webinar being hosted on March 19 will include research led by the University of Louisville and Simmons College of Kentucky. Learn about the study that looked for ways to improve health at the neighborhood level and get a deeper understanding of how transforming places can transform health. Read more about the webinar and register here.

Conference | A Cultural Perspective of Gambling in Kentucky

The Kentucky Council on Problem Gambling is hosting its 29th Annual Conference on Problem Gambling, focused on “A Cultural Perspective of Gambling in Kentucky.” This two-day conference is designed for Kentucky-based counselors, behavioral health professionals, peer supports, and community partners who want to deepen their understanding of problem gambling and its impact across communities. The conference is being held March 19 & 20 in Bowling Green. Learn more and register here.

Grant Opportunity | Strengthening Health Integration iN Education for Kentucky Students (SHINE KY) School-Based Services

The Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS), Kentucky Department for Medicaid Services (DMS) is making available grant funding to allow local education agencies to address critical gaps and enhance existing behavioral health services in its school-based Medicaid program. Funding will allow selected grantees to build or enhance their people, process, or technology systems infrastructure to support delivery and access to quality behavioral health services within school settings. The funding for this project comes from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as part of the State Grants for the Implementation, Enhancement, and Expansion of Medicaid and CHIP School-Based Services grant authorized under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. Read the notice of funding opportunity.

FAQs | Kentucky School Immunization Requirements

The Kentucky Department for Public Health recently posted an updated Frequently Asked Questions document regarding Kentucky School Immunization Requirements. This information reflects Kentucky school immunization requirements as of January 2026. Read the FAQs.

Webinar Series | Systems Simulation

Cairn Guidance brings over 15 years of experience facilitating system change with state education agencies, funders and grantees. They are hosting a 2026 free webinar series with opportunities to learn about their various systems simulations professional development experiences. The next webinar is being hosted on April 22. Learn more and register here.

Cairn Guidance’s work on School Health is currently being shown on Public TV around the US on All Access with Andy Garcia! Feel free to use/share with others! To watch this segment, go to: All Access.

Kentucky Behavior Institute 2026 | Registration Open

The Kentucky Council for Children with Behavioral Disorders is hosting the Kentucky Behavior Institute 2026 on June 15-16 in Louisville. It will offer sessions designed for every educator, including Back to Basics, Positive & Proactive Classrooms and sessions for Administrators (new and seasoned). Attendees can choose sessions that best meet their needs and take away practical strategies to use immediately in their classrooms and schools. Learn more and register here.

What's New in Children's Health

Opioid Data Dashboard Empowers Local Leaders to Protect Kentucky’s Children

Kentucky Youth Advocates (KYA) has set up The Opioid Data Dashboard on Children and Families as a “Tool for Local Leaders to Protect Future Generations from the Impacts of Opioid Use Disorder.” The dashboard contains data to see where the Kentucky local opioid settlement funds can have the greatest impact so that communities can use it to develop plans to prevent opioid use disorder before it starts and reduce its effects.

US Newborn Hepatitis B Vaccination Drops After Years of Growth

An analysis of more than 12.4 million US newborns found that hepatitis B (HBV) birth-dose vaccination rates fell by over 10 percentage points in the past two years, following six years of steady gains. The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published a study, US Newborn Hepatitis B Virus Vaccination Rates, led by researchers at the University of California San Diego. The study reviewed more than 300 million electronic health records from 1,800 hospitals and 41,500 clinics nationwide through September 2025. The dataset included infants born between January 2017 and August 2025.

Birth-dose HBV vaccination has significantly reduced HBV-related illness and death. Infants infected in their first year face a 90% risk of chronic infection, which can lead to liver disease and cancer.

According to the World Health Organization, US birth-dose coverage increased from about 21% in 2002 to 66%–75% in 2019, consistent with findings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Researchers focused on trends beginning in July 2023, a period marked by heightened public discussion of childhood vaccines.

Why Mattering Matters: Building Lifelong Well-Being from the Start

The Havard University Center on the Developing Child published the working paper Mattering in Early Childhood: Building a Strong Foundation for Life. As the paper states, the concept of mattering—the feeling that we are valued and have something meaningful to contribute—is gaining momentum among researchers and practitioners as a cornerstone of lifelong well-being.

While mattering is important at every age, it begins in infancy. When children grow up feeling seen, valued, and significant, the benefits ripple across their health and development for years to come. And when the adults who care for them feel that they matter, that sense of value extends outward, strengthening families, communities, and entire ecosystems of care.

As the center points out, at a time when public policies, like paid family leave, housing, nutrition supports, and immigration laws, seem to send powerful signals about who matters, focusing on early childhood feels especially urgent. The good news? Mattering is actionable. Caregivers, educators, business leaders, and policymakers all play a role in building environments where children and adults in their lives feel valued.

In Your Community

Louisville Youth Group: Brave Space in Action

Across Kentucky and the nation, LGBTQIA+ youth continue to face disproportionate risks that impact their safety, stability, and wellbeing. Many are at elevated risk of suicide, homelessness, substance use, school dropout, and medical problems. The mental health crisis is especially urgent. More than half (52.9%) of LGBTQ youth report seriously considering suicide in the past year. Sixty-eight percent experience symptoms of anxiety, and half say they want mental health care but cannot access it.

Nearly half of LGBTQ youth ages 13–17 report being bullied, and only 26% say they always feel safe in their classrooms. Just 5% report that teachers and school staff are supportive. For many, reporting harassment does not reliably result in protection.

In this climate, affirming spaces can be lifesaving.

A Mission Rooted in Empowerment

Louisville Youth Group (LYG) exists to empower LGBTQIA+ youth to grow into healthy and resilient leaders through community connection, life skills education, and social advocacy. Its work is grounded in four core commitments: creating Brave Space for courageous growth and empathy; remaining youth-centered and guided by lived experience; fostering community-minded service and activism; and actively practicing anti-racism within the organization and beyond.

LYG provides age-responsive programming designed to support youth across developmental stages. Family Group serves ages 5–12, while Tween Group supports ages 10–12. Teen Group provides connection and stability for adolescents, and the Transgender + Non-binary Group centers youth whose identities are often most marginalized.

For older youth, the Youth Leadership Council (ages 18–24) cultivates advocacy skills and prepares emerging leaders. Beyond weekly groups, LYG offers a private Discord server for safe digital connection, the Beyond Labels Resource Closet, the Rainbow Lending Library, support for GSAs, and referrals to affirming healthcare providers. Together, these services form a layered network of belonging and practical support.

In terms of mental health supports and referrals, LYG provides in-house programming to improve emotional wellbeing outcomes, events and teen camp supports, all of which have led to sustained and meaningful engagement by the participating youth

In a time when many LGBTQIA+ youth report feeling unsafe at school, an increasing number have considered relocating due to hostile laws; they feel unsupported by adults, and overwhelmed by hostile public rhetoric, LYG stands as a consistent and affirming presence.

LYG provides something powerful and measurable: by pairing emotional gains with sustained participation and accessible resources, Louisville Youth Group is doing more than hosting programs — it is reducing distress, strengthening resilience, and building the next generation of LGBTQIA+ leaders.

Brave Space is more than a value statement. For the youth who walk through LYG’s doors, it is a turning point.

Take Action!

Protect Medicaid and SNAP!

Medicaid – HB2

After a significant number of amendments HB2, the Medicaid Reform Act, passed the Kentucky House 72-21 on February 27, 2026.

As Kentucky Voices for Health (KVH), a KCHC Steering Committee member organization states, “Kentucky is taking a very different path from the rest of the country as states prepare for federal guidance on the Big Beautiful Bill [Federal HR1]. While most states are passing broad, flexible compliance language and waiting for CMS to spell out operational details, HB2 locks Kentucky into a rigid framework before those federal rules even exist (…) the Big Beautiful Bill already represents the largest Medicaid cut in history, so most states are taking a cautious, flexible approach that meets federal minimums without risk of being ill-positions as the rules evolve. Kentucky should do the same.”

KVH has issued a sign-on letter to take action on this issue. The organization has also provides an HB2 explainer.

SNAP – SB257 and SB265

While the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) administrative costs were added to the House Budget (HB500), there are still significant cuts, as this article from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy summarizes.

Two other bills related to SNAP have been submitted that would impact SNAP and make hunger in Kentucky worse. SB257 establishes costly, over-verification systems, including for citizenship, and creates an asset test. SB265 includes SNAP restrictions.

SNAP constitutes the best tool against hunger. Action is needed to reach out to your Senator and ask them to protect SNAP. The Legislative Message Line is 1-800-372-7181.