Check out the Connect for Kids Health topic page for more information on CHIP, Medicaid and improving children's health and health care. Safety Keeping kids safe is a constant concern for parents, from keeping toddlers away from electrical plugs to keeping young teenagers away from alcohol and drugs. Parents alone, however, cannot safeguard their kids from the many hazards they face. Unintentional injuries from traffic accidents and firearms, environmental hazards and exposure to violence are key safety concerns for children's advocates. These, along with efforts aimed at expanding alcohol and drug treatment programs for youth, and those geared towards new gun control legislation, are policies that a divided Congress is likely to find most contentious.
Prevention is the key to keeping kids safe from the harm of their own risky behaviors.
Recent evaluation research suggests that broad-based youth programs that engage kids in a variety of activities with caring adult supervision are the most effective at preventing early pregnancies, violence, alcohol and drug abuse. But these types of general youth programs are often more vulnerable to budget cuts than those with a narrower focus. Finally, the debate over what to do when prevention fails is likely to heat up. While most kids do not engage in high risk behaviors and violence, the stereotype of adolescents as disrespectful, selfish and even dangerous can be easily enlisted to support mandatory and adult-style punishment. Investments in mental health services, drug treatment, job training and other rehabilitation strategies often seem a tougher sell.