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Improved Safety for Children Close to Meth Labs

November 29, 2005
By: Kristen Commander
State Capital Bureau

Senator Kit Bond says Missouri isn't doing enough to protect children exposed to meth. Kristen Commander has more from Jefferson City.

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Bond spoke to a new committee meeting to design a state wide plan to improve the safety and medical treatment of children living close to meth labs. The committee will receive 250,000 dollars from the federal governement to implement the two year program. Senator Kit Bond says nearly 500 children in Missouri are found in or near meth labs each year.

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Contents: "In no fault of their own they are exposed to some of the most hazardous materials anywhere in our society."

Bond says Missouri is known as the meth capital of the world. He hopes the new program will protect children exposed to meth labs from possible explosions, fires, and contamination.

Reporting from the state capital, I'm Kristen Commander.

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A new program in Missouri will protect children in the top meth-producing state in the country. Kristen Commander has more from Jefferson City.

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A special steering committee has formed to help children exposed to meth labs. Julie Cole Agee, executive director of the Missouri Juvenile Justice Association, teamed up with Senator Kit Bond to launch the project. Agee says the project received 250,000 dollars to focus on providing safety and medical attention to these children.

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Contents: "We're a not-for-profit, we're used to doing a lot with a little but we're thinking 250 thousand is a lot of money for us to do something that is going to have a state wide impact on all the children in Missouri that's a pretty huge accomplishment."

Agee says the program will include training sessions and a web-based course for the public. Eighteen other agenices will help with the effort, including the MU Truman School of Public Affairs.

Reporting from the Capital, I'm Kristen Commander.