On June 3, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed Senate Bill 25144 into law that will extend the paid family leave for parents with infants admitted to neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). This law hopes to alleviate the issue of parents of medically fragile newborns exhausting their leave before their baby is released from the hospital. The bill enhances Colorado’s Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) policy, offering an additional 12 weeks of paid leave for parents whose newborns are hospitalized. Kim Freier, owner of Spring People Solutions, a company devoted to small businesses and startups, supports the new law. She believes the law offers a resource that small businesses can use to assist their employees during difficult times.

Rebecca Alderfer, Executive Director of Colorado Perinatal Care Quality Collaborative (CPCQC), emphasizes the critical need for mental health support for parents with children in the NICU, stating that these parents’ stress rates rise to 40-50%. Alderfer supports the reform, as it acknowledges the additional support needed for parents with infants in the NICU.

The new law is a significant step forward, given the limited access to paid leave in the U.S. Currently, fewer than one in four U.S. workers have any form of paid family leave. As such, there are hopes that the law demonstrates leadership other states can follow to implement similar policies recognizing the challenges faced by NICU families. The increased 12 weeks of NICU leave will be available for claims starting from January 1, 2026.

If you are a resident of Colorado and are unsure about how to get hold of Paid Family Leave (PFL) to understand the new law better, you can consider using resources like eddcaller.com that offer information and possible contact to various state agencies’ customer service, including PFL. They can offer guidance on how to contact PFL for your queries.