Committee advances bill to codify childcare health consultants and HealthySteps into state statute

Senators Cutter and Judah asked the Senate Health and Human Services Committee to advance Senate Bill 17, legislation to codify and strengthen two evidence‑based early childhood health programs — childcare health consultants (CCHCs) and the HealthySteps pediatric primary care program — within state statute and the Colorado Department of Early Childhood.

Sponsors and a large group of health and early childhood witnesses described the programs as existing, evidence‑based services that support children from birth through age 5, help with developmental screening, and assist providers and families in managing medical and behavioral conditions in childcare and primary care settings. “Healthy Steps is an evidence based pediatric primary care program that provides support to parents of children ages 0 to 3 … There are currently 32 Healthy Steps sites across Colorado serving over 38,000 children,” said Senator Judah while introducing the bill.

Multiple witnesses detailed how CCHCs and HealthySteps operate. Kendra Dunn, deputy director for program delivery at the Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC), testified the department funds portions of both programs within existing appropriations but said the department could not implement the bill’s proposed expansions without additional funding. Dr. Melissa Buchholz, director of the HealthySteps program at Assuring Better Child Health and Development and a clinical psychologist at Children’s Hospital Colorado, said HealthySteps places child development experts inside pediatric practices to support families and clinicians. “There is no other program that combines early childhood health and well‑being in the context of a primary care setting,” Buchholz said.

Registered nurses and childcare health consultants who testified — including Theresa Rapstein and Erin Bluth from Children’s Hospital Colorado and Allison Hoppe of Denver Health — described on‑the‑ground examples in which consultants trained and delegated clinical tasks so children with medical needs (G‑tubes, diabetes, seizure disorders, severe allergies) could remain enrolled in childcare. Rapstein said Colorado has “5,000 licensed childcare programs” serving about 247,000 children and that the CCHC model supports inclusion and safety for children with special health needs.

Sponsors offered two technical amendments during the hearing. Amendment L001 clarified funding and implementation language, including direction that the Department of Early Childhood may use Medicaid, insurance, or other funding sources to implement the programs and that the pediatric primary care practice program is described (not newly created) in statute and should not be implemented by the department until adequate funding is available. Amendment L002 made several program elements permissive — for example, making the model, statewide professional development plan, data collection and reporting, and program evaluation permissive rather than mandatory. Both amendments were adopted without recorded opposition.

After discussion and amendment, Senator Giudor moved Senate Bill 17, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations with a favorable recommendation. The committee voted to advance the bill; the clerk recorded the final passage in committee as 7 to 2. Testimony in support came from pediatricians, early childhood program leaders, nonprofit advocates (Healthier Colorado), the American Academy of Pediatrics Colorado chapter, child advocacy centers, and parents who described personal experiences of being able to keep children in childcare because of consultant support.

Why it matters: Supporters said codifying CCHCs and the HealthySteps model creates a statutory home for evidence‑based services, helps attract future federal, state, local or philanthropic funding, and strengthens coordination across early childhood and health systems. Opposition in the hearing was limited to funding concerns: CDEC staff said the department lacks the appropriations to carry out the expanded implementation outlined in the bill without additional funding.

What remains: The bill was advanced to appropriations as amended; implementation details and funding authorization will be resolved in subsequent committee action and budget deliberations.