ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Any efforts in New Mexico to build a successful early childhood education system will depend on the state’s ability to prevent child neglect and abuse, members of a task force on child well-being told state lawmakers Thursday.

The task force over the past year has been monitoring efforts by health care providers and others to implement the provision of a 2019 law that calls for plans of care to be developed for children born exposed to drugs or alcohol. The idea has been to identify vulnerable families and help them find support during the first year of the child's life.

More than 1,000 such plans have been created around the state. Officials said the majority of those families and their babies have followed through and are being monitored.

While the effort has no specific state funding to back it up, some lawmakers suggested that the state agencies focused on child welfare better coordinate so that tracking and monitoring at-risk families could be institutionalized and receive regular funding.

Task force chairman Dr. Andrew Hsi, a professor with the pediatrics department at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, said despite the positive outcomes of early intervention, it has been difficult to organize state leadership around the issue of preventing child neglect.

Data suggests 1 out of 2 New Mexico children have at least one adverse experience by the time they are 3, and that can include growing up in a family affected by substance abuse. Hsi said those adverse experiences can lead to negative outcomes that range from developmental issues to difficulties in school.

“Child neglect almost always precedes child abuse and therefore we think that preventative efforts will be effective,” he testified. “Upstream efforts such as a plan of care to identify vulnerable families at the time of delivery are one example of that. Initiating treatment services for a woman during pregnancy and potentially other family members before the baby is born is another example.”

Hsi said some advocates believe that early childhood education would be a solution to the issue of prevention, but he warned that the majority of families wouldn't be reached by such a singular focus.

The experts told lawmakers that families who initiate plans of care are dealing with what they described as structural issues related to systemic racism and bias and as a result are often not at a point where seeking out early childhood services for their children is a priority.

“After working on this, I believe that we need to have a continued concerted effort to understand how to support adequate and appropriate parenting — which is the obverse of child neglect — so that we can improve the safety and health of all families in New Mexico,” he said.

New Mexico has for years been ranked at or near the bottom when it comes to indicators for child well-being. While tens of thousands of more children have access to health insurance now, the latest Kids Count report put out annually by the Annie E. Casey Foundation still shows the state at No. 50 overall.

Amber Wallin, deputy director of the advocacy group New Mexico Voices for Children, told lawmakers that outcomes likely have gotten worse due to the coronavirus pandemic. She pointed to data that shows pediatric visits and vaccinations are down and that more than one-third of children in the state are projected to be food insecure.

The pandemic also has put a significant dent in state revenues and economic opportunities, but Wallin urged lawmakers to be cautious when they convene in January to set spending priorities for the coming fiscal year. She said recent investments had started to show promise before the pandemic hit.

“Moving forward, we think New Mexico needs to continue investing in the programs that create opportunities for our families,” she said, adding that meeting basic needs such as food assistance, health care, child care and housing will be crucial.