Rep. Sewell Announces $1.2 Million for the Community Action Association of Alabama to Help Alleviate the Need for Diapers Among Alabama's Babies and Toddlers

Birmingham, AL – Today, U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (AL-07) announced $1.2 million for the Community Action Association of Alabama to help alleviate the need for diapers among Alabama’s babies and toddlers. This grant is designed to expand existing diaper distribution programs as part of the Diaper Distribution Demonstration and Research Pilot at the Administration of Children and Families (ACF) at the Department of Health and Human Services. The program, also known as the Diaper Distribution Pilot, channels new funding to expand existing diaper distribution services through the robust network of anti-poverty services funded by ACF’s Office of Community Services (OCS).

“Alabama’s working families know all too well just how expensive purchasing diapers can be,” said Rep. Sewell. “In fact, for workers earning minimum wage, diapers can cost up to 8% of their total income. With this $1.2 million grant, we are taking an important step toward ensuring that all of our families have the diapers they need to keep our babies clean, healthy, and happy. I know that this will make a big difference for many of Alabama’s most vulnerable families.”

Diapers are essential for the health and wellbeing of babies and toddlers, but one in three families in the United States does not have enough of them. Diapers alone can cost 8% of a person’s total income if they are earning federal minimum wage, and parents and caregivers who do not have enough diapers often cannot drop their children off at child care. This means that parents cannot go to work, and babies and toddlers are more susceptible to painful rashes and infections. A lack of diapers is not only a public health issue, it is a formidable obstacle to economic mobility for families with low incomes.

The Community Action Association of Alabama (CAAA) works to better focus local, state, private, and federal resources to assist low-income individuals and families statewide. CAAA is a partnership made up of 18 Community Action Agencies funded by the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) working to produce measurable outcomes and results to eliminate poverty. Using the $1.2 million awarded for the Diaper Pilot, CAAA will distribute diapers and diapering supplies to low-income families while providing parenting education and increasing access to wrap-around services. CAAA will collaborate with multiple partners including agency Early Head Start programs, the National Diaper Bank Network, and local community organizations such as:

    VOICES for Alabama’s Children
    Low-Income Housing Coalition of Alabama
    Collaborative Solutions
    Alabama Possible
    Bundles of Hope Diaper Bank
    Whatley Health Services
    Community Service Programs of West Alabama, Inc. (CSP)