An assist for moms

Besides love, a new child needs a few things when she comes into this world: items like car seats, onesies and diapers. Any parent can tell you that buying these things is a joy — an expensive one.

That’s a problem for the young parents whose guardians are the state of California.

When foster children become parents, they’re far less likely than other parents to have what they need for their infants. They’re eligible for a county welfare infant supplement, but not until the child is born. Due to registration requirements, these new parents often don’t start receiving the supplement until a month after the child is born.

This is why Gov. Jerry Brown needs to sign AB1838. The bill, by state Assemblyman Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, would give expecting foster youth the infant supplement three months before the due date. The idea is to allow expecting parents to plan ahead for the needs of their child — and to get badly needed prenatal care.

Foster youth are less likely to get prenatal care than the average teen parent, and prenatal care has a dramatic effect on the health of both mothers and babies.

AB1838 passed the state Assembly and Senate unanimously. However, since it adds $2.5 million to the budget, it’s opposed by the state Department of Finance. It’s a small cost to take care of California’s most vulnerable population. Brown should sign AB1838 now.