WASHINGTON—ZERO TO THREE, a leading national nonprofit dedicated to ensuring all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life, condemned the Administration’s efforts to bar immigrant children from accessing federally funded programs, including Head Start, Early Head Start, and vital health services. This change is an attack on immigrant families that will negatively impact communities across the country. Melissa Boteach, chief policy officer at ZERO TO THREE, stated:
“Reclassifying vital programs to prevent immigrant babies and families from accessing basic federal programs is harmful, inhumane, and will undermine the health and well-being of babies and those who care for them. For over twenty years, the Administration and Congress have acknowledged that every baby deserves a strong start in life, ensuring babies growing up in households have access to the early learning, food, and health care they need to keep them on the best developmental track. Changing this longstanding policy to block access to effective programs will cause lifelong harm while intimidating and punishing hard-working families and communities.
“Banning immigrant children and the adults they rely on from accessing basic, essential needs is misguided and cruel. Now is the time to prioritize families, not punish them.”
