About 70,000 Connecticut children in need would get free diapers under proposed bill

CT Insider – Wednesday, February 19, 2025
By Cris Villalonga-Vivoni 

Maurice “Mo” Edwards knew from a young age that he wanted to be the best dad ever to his future child. Yet, that future came much sooner than expected when he learned was becoming a father with a former girlfriend more than 16 years ago.

As a then 24-year-old who had just graduated from college and was starting an entry-level job, he said financially providing and supporting his newborn was a challenge that placed a strain on his mental health. It was when Edwards gained access to free diapers through the Diaper Bank of Connecticut that he finally felt confident in his role as a father while also keeping his newborn healthy and clean.

“It was the best thing that I could have done,” he said.

The Diaper Bank helps nearly 7,000 Connecticut families access free diapers and other incontinence items through its various community partners, but this just scratches the surface of need, said Chief Executive Officer Janet Stolfi Alfano. Its network serves only about 7% of the diaper need in the state and is looking to lawmakers to help address the diaper insecurity on a broader scale with legislation.
A new bill filed by the Human Services Committee looks to expand Medicaid coverage starting in July for infant and toddler diapers. It’ll be offered to children under 3 years old whose medical providers deem it medically necessary to prevent persistent infections and other health conditions caused by poor diaper hygiene. The exact way it will work is still being sorted.

More than 93,000 children 4 years old and younger are enrolled in the Medicaid program, also known as HUSKY, according to the state Department of Social Services’ most recent data. However, Alfano said not all of those children use diapers. She estimates around 70,000 children will be served by the expansion.

Alfano said when common conditions, such as diaper rash and urinary tract infections, are persistent and parents don’t have enough clean diapers, it can impact the baby’s health more severely and ultimately raise medical expenses. Not having consistent clean diapers also affects caregivers’ health and mental well-being, according to a 2022 University of Wisconsin–Madison study.

Many daycare centers also require parents provide multiple days’ worth of diapers to drop off their children. As a result, one in four caregivers reported missing an average of five workdays a month because they didn’t have enough diapers to leave their child at daycare, impacting income, according to the National Diaper Bank Network, a national nonprofit.

It also found an average monthly supply of diapers costs $80 to more than $100 in Connecticut. To cover costs, many families facing diaper insecurity reported needing to reduce other expenses to afford their children’s diapers, such as skipping meals and cutting utility costs.

Working an entry-level job for $32,000 a year, Edwards said he was “flat broke” when he had his daughter.

He said his child support was $150, due twice a week, on top of lawyer fees. The other costs of having a newborn quickly piled up too, including buying diapers, wipes, toiletries and meals. A pack of 35 diapers would cost Edwards around $26, and he said his daughter could use up to five diapers a day.

“It was getting to me because I felt like I wasn’t doing enough to provide my daughter the best of the best,” he said.

Edwards’ grandmother learned about the diaper bank and its distribution center in the basement of Mt. Bethel Church in New Haven. He said he was hesitant to join but eventually signed up for the program, knowing how much it would help him and his daughter.

Every time Edwards walked into the church basement to pick up the diapers, he said he’d be greeted by a loving, helpful community who made him feel good about seeking help. The money Edwards saved on weekly diapers mainly went into a savings account for a down payment on an apartment to move out of his mother’s apartment. He also used it to buy himself nicer clothes and more name-brand products at grocery stores.

That weekly pack of 20 to 30 diapers kept Edwards’ daughter healthy, lowered his stress levels, and brought him confidence as a father, provider and man. Access to diapers also helped Edwards be more present with his daughter and lightened a load from his shoulders over those two years, proving that big things can come in small packages.

“I was able to give more of myself to her as her dad,” he said. “To show her how she should be valued and how she can feel love, but we all know if you’re a stressed-out parent, you can’t give that to your children.”

The new diaper bill was created based on the conversations and lessons learned from previous iterations of the proposed legislation, state Rep. Jillian Gilchrest, D-West Hartford, and co-chair of the Human Services Committee, said at a recent press conference announcing the bill.

This is the third year in a row lawmakers have proposed broad diaper-related Medicaid expansions.

The bills in 2023 and 2024 didn’t pass. A main opposition was the cost to the state, according to testimony from the state Department of Social Services submitted against both previous bills.

The fiscal estimate for broad diaper coverage would be around $119.9 million annually, which was not considered in Gov. Ned Lamont’s proposed budget at the time, the department said.

A broad diaper coverage doesn’t meet provisions to qualify as medical equipment, devices, and supplies benefits under Medicaid State Plan coverage and may not receive a “federal match,” according to the testimony. If federal reimbursement were received for the diapers, it’d still cost the state around $59.9 million.

The department staff also noted state Medicaid already covers diapers and other incontinence supplies for patients older than 3 years old with medical conditions.

Gilchrest said the new bill narrows eligibility based on a medical provider’s opinion. She said the policy is effective in helping provide preventative care – aligning with state efforts to address adverse maternal health outcomes and health disparities. Also, she said it’s a “fiscally good” idea because it prevents families and the state from spending money on avoidable health care visits.

“Know that diapers are an essential means to ensure diaper hygiene, and they prevent a range of avoidable medical conditions in infants and young children,” she said. “Here in Connecticut, we have an opportunity to expand access and to improve health conditions for a mom and her child.”

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