(US) – On Monday, July 9th President Donald Trump signed a recently passed Senate bill into law that is designed to help grandparents around the country raising their grandchildren.
The Supporting Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Act will establish a federal task force that will identify, coordinate and share information and resources. The task force will be charged with identifying, promoting, coordinating and disseminating information about resources and best practices to assist relative caregivers in meeting educational, health, nutritional and other needs of the children in their care. The task force will also offer resources that help the caregivers maintain their own physical, mental, and emotional well-being as well. Additionally, the council will develop a process that allows the public to provide comments and recommendations.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will be the lead agency coordinating the work of the council.
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is a sponsor of the bipartisan bill. In public statements, Senator Brown has cited the opioid epidemic as one of the strongest contributing factors that have led to this trend. Reports indicate numbers are continuing to grow as the epidemic worsens.
Recent reports also suggest roughly 2.6 million American children are being raised by their grandparents or other relatives.
