Originally posted on Woodbridge Town News.

Children’s HealthWatch, headquartered at Boston Medical Center, has named U.S. Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro their 2021 Children’s HealthWatch Champion.  The annual award is given to “a champion who advocates for evidence-based policies that help children thrive.”  Congresswoman DeLauro, who represents Connecticut’s 3^rd congressional district, was presented the award at the organization’s 4^th annual Fall Celebration which took place virtually on October 25.

Children’s HealthWatch Executive Director Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba states that Congresswoman DeLauro embodies the spirit of the award, “…in her conviction that all children deserve to be healthy and thrive, regardless of who they are or where they come from.  This basic but ever true premise underscores everything Congresswoman DeLauro does on behalf of countless children and families.  We are so thankful for her resolve to champion policies that lift and support the potential of families who have so much to give to their communities and the nation at large.”

The Congresswoman has long championed legislation that benefit children and families economically and promote racial equity, including through policies like the Child Tax Credit (CTC).  Following an 18-year mission to reduce child poverty by expanding the CTC led by Congresswoman DeLauro, Congress made a forward step this past spring with passage of The American Rescue Plan Act which temporarily extended the credit.  This year’s event, “Equity Can’t Wait:  Transforming Child Health Today For A Prosperous Tomorrow”, will showcase how sound economic policies like the CTC improve child and family health, help lift families out of poverty and hunger, and support equity.

“We share Congresswoman DeLauro’s dedication to fight for America’s families,” says Ettinger de Cuba.  In addition to leading work on the CTC, she believes that we must also raise the nation’s minimum wage, give all employees access to paid sick days, allow employees to take paid family and medical leave, and ensure equal pay for equal work.  Every day, she fights for legislation that would give all working families an opportunity to succeed.”

Past recipients of this award include U.S. Congressman James McGovern (D-MA 2^nd District), Diane Yentel, Executive Director of the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, and U.S. Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (D-MA 7^th District).

For more information about the event, visit https://childrenshealthwatch.org/fall-celebration/.

For 23 years, Children’s HealthWatch, headquartered at Boston Medical Center, has been on the forefront of timely, actionable research connecting economic hardships and public policies to the health and development of young children and families.  Its staff is consulted by Congressional offices on issues of family and child public policy, and their research has been cited on the floors of Congress and state legislatures, in national media and countless research publications and has spurred policy improvements that promote health and economic equity.

Boston Medical Center (BMC) is a private, not-for-profit, 514-bed, academic medical center that is the primary teaching affiliate of Boston University School of Medicine.  It is the largest and busiest provider of trauma and emergency services in New England.  BMC offers specialized care for complex health problems and is a leading research institution, receiving more than $166 million in sponsored research funding in fiscal year 2019.  It is the 13^th largest funding recipient in the U.S. from the National Institutes of Health among independent hospitals.  In 1997, BMC founded Boston Medical Center Health Plan, Inc., now one of the top ranked Medicaid MCOs in the country, as a non-profit managed care organization.  Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine are partners in Boston HealthNet – 12 community health centers focused on providing exceptional health care to residents of Boston.  For more information, please visit http://www.bmc.org.