Whether it’s CCS, CHGME, DSH or ACA, Tim Curley follows them all. With years of experience in federal and state health policy, he keeps a close eye on the politics of paying for children’s health care, including trends in Medicaid and managed care policy that deeply affect children with special health care needs and their caregivers.
A shared plan of care is an essential element of a medical home for children with special health care needs, yet there is no consensus on either the content of care plans or the process of care planning. A new report outlines recommended core content of a comprehensive and integrated plan, and the steps necessary to create it.
Kausha King’s work as the parent health liaison at the Care Parent Network in Contra Costa County is deeply personal. Nearly everything she teaches parents about advocating for their children with special health care needs, she has experienced herself. “It’s a world all our own, and we came into it blind and had to learn,” she says.
Arthur Manalac is learning how to be a big picture guy as he uses data to improve care coordination for young children in California’s rural Kern County.
Health services for California students with special health care needs vary greatly by school district, are provided by a variety of school staff, operate under a confusing patchwork of regulations, and are often underfunded, according to a new study. Researchers from California State University-Sacramento’s School of Nursing analyzed 2011-2012 state education data, interviewed school education experts, and conducted a large-scale survey of certified school nurses who are members of the California School Nurses Association.
Karen Fessel is known throughout California for her passionate advocacy to get insurers to pay for the services families need for their children on the autism spectrum. Now, she’s branching out to serve children with other special health care needs.
An important new report presents the first-ever national consensus standards for improving systems of care for children with special health care needs.
For families of children with special health care needs, the idea of managed care can be worrisome. Families fear that in the interest of cost savings and maximizing profits health plans will limit their children's care. A new study by the National Academy for State Health Policy, supported by the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children’s Health, examines how three states, including California, try to ensure that children with special health care needs are identified in managed care organizations and that their needs are assessed and appropriate care provided. The authors propose promising practices that states could adopt to meet the requirements of this population of children.
