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House Rs are still pushing proposals to take #TANF income support away from families. They should focus on the evidence: income support is critical for children’s and parents’ health & well-being -- and taking it away can result in costly mental & physical health problems. A🧵 
When families don’t have access to income support & can’t cover basic needs, kids may experience toxic stress that impacts their physical & mental health over time, & puts them at risk of chronic conditions such as heart-disease & cancer. harvardcenter.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/upl…
High levels of material hardship increase stress in parents. Being unable to pay rent or buy necessities (often while working multiple jobs) is taxing, and takes a toll on caregivers’ health and their time and energy for parenting.
Material hardship is also a risk factor for Adverse Childhood Experiences like household dysfunction & neglect, but evidence shows that these risks can be reduced w/supports that help parents meet their children’s basic needs. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…
Conversely, when families with low incomes are given income support through economic supports like #TANF, there are fewer reports of maltreatment and neglect, less foster care involvement, & a lowered risk of child welfare involvement.
https://twitter.com/Chapin_Hall/status/1659238681415122961
Researchers have concluded that taking income from families in profound need, as the House proposals would do, would likely impose significant long-term societal and economic costs. povertycenter.columbia.edu/publication/co…
Rather than putting children and families at risk by taking needed income support away, policymakers should be finding ways to make #TANF income support more accessible and effective to help families thrive.
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