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Fact Sheet: Congress is Playing with the Lives of our Babies and Children
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Federal Policy
National policies affect every aspect of families' lives and can promote equity across states to ensure all infant and toddlers have the best opportunity to thrive.
What We Do
Congress and the Administration could do more to improve our systems for supporting the health and well-being of young children and families.
The ZERO TO THREE federal policy team works to influence decisions made at the national level and offers resources that identify policy opportunities to bolster the supports available to this country’s youngest children and their families, and to lay a strong foundation for our future.
ZERO TO THREE’s Early Childhood Policy Priorities
We advocate for policies that ensure all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life. Our priorities focus on three key areas:
- Good Health: Ensuring wraparound care for families and young children that addresses both physical and mental health needs. This includes expanding access to pediatric and perinatal mental health services and integrating early childhood developmental supports into healthcare.
- Strong Families: Supporting parents with programs that create safe, stable, and nurturing environments. Policies that improve family economic security, such as paid family leave and strengthened child tax credits, help lay a solid foundation for early development.
- Positive Early Learning Opportunities: Increasing access to high-quality, affordable child care while ensuring early childhood educators receive fair compensation. Strengthening early learning programs helps babies and toddlers reach their full potential.
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Early Head Start Helps Families Thrive — Let’s Keep It That Way
Early Head Start is the only federal program dedicated to the comprehensive development of pregnant women, infants and toddlers in families with low incomes.
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Open Letter
The Forgotten Fourth Trimester: Why Moms and Babies Deserve Better
Rachell, a Strolling Thunder 2025 parent, shares her journey through pregnancy loss, postpartum PTSD and early parenting to highlight why families urgently need paid leave, maternal mental health care and support for infant and early childhood mental health.
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Be a Big Voice for Little Kids
Bring attention to what babies and their families need to thrive.
