New family home visiting grants to improve lives, save money for communities across Minnesota

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has announced new grants for nearly one-third of the counties in the state to increase family home visiting - a proven way to benefit at-risk children, promote life-long health, and reduce the need for future community spending on social programs.

Family home visiting programs serve at-risk families such as first-time moms and families facing challenges like mental illness, domestic abuse or substance abuse. Through home visiting programs, a nurse or other trained professional provides practical health and parenting support to parents and pregnant women during ongoing home visits until the child is 2 to 3 years old.

“Our youngest, most vulnerable children and their families deserve all the care they need to grow up healthy, safe, and strong,” said Governor Mark Dayton. “The home visits and ongoing support made possible by these grants will help hundreds of families across Minnesota get a better start in life.”

National research has shown that family home visiting programs result in improved health during pregnancy, fewer childhood injuries and improved school readiness. These programs also have had a demonstrated impact on reducing child emergency room visits and the number of months a family is on welfare. There is a return on investment in the range of $2.88 to $5.70 for every dollar spent to serve high-risk families through the Nurse-Family Partnership home visiting program, according to an analysis by the RAND Corporation.

The new round of grants authorized by the 2017 Legislature and signed into law by Governor Dayton includes more than $25 million for 16 community grantees in both the Twin Cities and greater Minnesota. This latest round of funding benefits 26 new counties and one tribal nation. Over the last year, Minnesota has successfully supported planning, start-up and expansion of evidence-based family home visiting programs in three tribal nations and 51 counties.

Minnesota Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm plans to meet with several home visiting grantees this summer and fall.

“We are thankful for the partnership of state legislators and local public health organizations in delivering these services,” Commissioner Malcolm said. “The evidence is clear that family home visiting programs can help at-risk kids get a healthier start, and I look forward to traveling to meet with grantees and learn more about their efforts to benefit families and communities around the state.”

This round of grants follows a first round of $4.86 million in grants awarded in October 2017. The first phase allowed MDH to continue home visiting services for families receiving home visiting services and to sustain critical home visiting infrastructure in greater Minnesota. The funding covered two tribal nations and 18 counties in greater Minnesota.

The second phase of grant funding announced this week will expand the benefits of family home visiting to more communities and allow for additional evidence-based home visiting service models catering to the specific needs and priorities of local communities. Many of the grantees consist of partnerships of multiple agencies or counties working together and providing services within their communities under one grant award.

Recipients of phase two implementation grants include:

• Bois Fort Band of Ojibwe, receiving $634,000

• Carlton-Cook-Lake-St. Louis Community Health Board, receiving $2.1 million

• Comunidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio, Inc. (CLUES), receiving $791,000

• Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Isanti, Hennepin, Ramsey, Washington, Bloomington, Edina, Richfield, Scott and Dakota counties, receiving $8.5 million

• Brown, Nicollet, Le Sueur, Watonwan, Waseca, Faribault and Martin counties, receiving $2.5 million

• Headway Emotional Health Services, receiving $473,000

• Hennepin County, Ahavah BirthWorks, Catholic Charities, Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery, and St. David’s Center receiving $2.1 million

• Lakes and Prairies Community Action Partnership, Inc., receiving $1.3 million

• City of Minneapolis, Hennepin Healthcare’s Minnesota Visiting Nurses Association, and Goodwill Easter Seals, receiving $1.1 million

• Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center and the Division of Indian Work, receiving $824,000

• Dodge, Freeborn, Goodhue, Wabasha, Winona and Rice counties, receiving $4.2 million

• Way to Grow, receiving $815,000

MDH is also awarding $392,443 in planning grants to four communities. Recipients include:

• Countryside Community Health Board, receiving $133,000

• Des Moines Valley Health and Human Services, receiving $61,000

• St. Paul-Ramsey Community Health Board, receiving $119,000

• WellShare International, Inc., receiving $79,000

More information about family home visiting is available on the MDH website at Family Home Visiting Program.