Pregnant, Parenting, Children, Families and Substance Use Workgroup
In response to the Opioid Epidemic, Washington State created a state Opioid Taskforce and an Opioid and Overdose Response Plan (WA State - Opioid Response Plan). The Pregnant, Parenting, Children and Families (PPCF) workgroup is connected to the state's taskforce and works to address the impact of substance use on families.
The current initiatives aim to transform our systems of substance use care so parents can receive treatment without being separated from their children. During pregnancy/birth/postpartum, this means:
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Transitioning to dyadic or couplet care at birth.
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Expanding hospital inpatient days and creating Medicaid payment for services.
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Establishing best practices, including withdrawal/stabilization care for mothers/birthparents and eat/sleep/console for infants.
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Expanding residential treatment beds that allow parents to enter treatment with their children.
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Providing access to safe and affordable housing.
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Voluntary wrap-around community-based services for families impacted by substance use.
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Increasing collaboration and communication between child welfare, birthing hospitals, and parents, when families are child welfare involved.
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Connecting families to services.
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Educating families and providers on harm reduction strategies for substance use and what to do for an overdose.
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Family treatment and early childhood court programs.
We have created these webpages to share information about the workgroup initiatives, state plan, workgroup meetings, and state programs. You can also sign up to receive emails about the workgroup meetings and updates.
