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State Policies to Promote Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health

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Did you know state policies play an important role in promoting infant and early childhood mental health? 

Infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH) describes the capacity of a child leading to healthy social and emotional development, including the ability to form secure connections with adults and other children, manage a broad range of emotions, and learn from exploration of the child’s environment.

Although all the Roadmap policies impact the IECMH system in a broad context, four of these evidence-based policies—paid family and medical leave, higher state minimum wages, Early Head Start, and Early Intervention services—specifically promote positive outcomes for infants’ and toddlers’ mental health.

Learn more in this summary of the evidence. 

Explore how policies and programs can better support children's mental health.

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Explore how states are addressing the benefits cliff by coordinating public assistance, phasing out benefits gradually, and supporting economic mobility.
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Policies on the Prenatal-to-3 State Policy Roadmap that Promote Housing Security

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2026 Prenatal-to-3 Research to Policy Summit​

Join us September 29 to explore how the prenatal-to-3 policy landscape changed from 2016 to 2026.
Join us September 29 to explore how the prenatal-to-3 policy landscape changed from 2016 to 2026.