Connecticut Children’s Healthy Homes Program Expands Statewide After Receiving New State Grant; Program Awarded Two Additional Grants

HARTFORD, Conn. – As we honor National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, Connecticut Children’s Healthy Homes Program (Healthy Homes) is excited to announce it is expanding statewide after receiving a generous state grant.

The Connecticut Department of Housing provided Healthy Homes with a $5 million grant to support interventions to make homes lead-safe and healthy, such as replacing windows and doors, resurfacing walls and floors, and repairing failed exterior siding to mitigate lead exposure; installing ventilation fans to reduce asthma-triggering mold and moisture in bathrooms and kitchens; and replacing broken stair treads and handrails to eliminate trip hazards. Also, Healthy Homes will be eligible to receive up to an additional $15 million to further support its statewide work in future years.

Prior to receiving this grant, Healthy Homes addressed lead and safety hazards in 21 Connecticut communities. The grant comes as Healthy Homes celebrates its 15th anniversary.

“It is exciting to expand statewide to further improve health outcomes for young children and their families,” stated Marcus Smith, the senior manager of Connecticut Children’s Healthy Homes Program. “Through our work, we hope Healthy Homes will serve as a catalyst for communities to optimize the health and well-being of all residents. The new state grant is critical to accomplishing that.”

Additional Grant Funding

Healthy Homes also received two additional grants from the federal government and a private foundation.

Healthy Homes is also now implementing a new $3.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to help children and their families in East Hartford and Windham lead healthier lives by eliminating lead paint and other health and safety hazards in homes.

To learn more about the Healthy Homes program and apply for a grant, click here.

Healthy Homes also received a $15,000 Listen for Good grant from the Fund for Shared Insight, which is a sponsored project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving is also providing $15,000 in matching funds. The funds will provide capacity-building and technical assistance to enable Healthy Homes to build internal systems and expertise for collecting and responding to client feedback, which will inform its work on future projects.

Healthy Homes is part of Connecticut Children’s Office for Community Child Health, which is dedicated to promoting optimal health, development and well-being for all children.

“Healthy and safe housing has a profound impact on the overall health and development of young children,” said Paul H. Dworkin, MD, executive vice president for community child health at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. “These three new grants provide a tremendous opportunity for Healthy Homes to enhance the capacity not only of its program, but also of the entire community to strengthen families to promote their children’s health, development and well-being.”

About Connecticut Children’s Medical Center

Connecticut Children’s Medical Center is the only hospital in Connecticut dedicated exclusively to the care of children and is ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of the best children’s hospitals in the nation. With a medical staff of more than 1,000, Connecticut Children’s provides comprehensive, world-class health care in more than 30 pediatric specialties and subspecialties. Connecticut Children’s Medical Center is a not-for-profit organization, which serves as the primary pediatric teaching hospital for the UConn School of Medicine, has a teaching partnership with the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University and is a research partner of The Jackson Laboratory. Connecticut Children’s Office for Community Child Health is a national leader in community-based prevention and wellness programs.