As the single largest source of health coverage for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSCHN), with robust benefits and cost-sharing limits, Medicaid provides critical coverage of health care services to CYSHCN. State Title V programs are uniquely positioned to collaborate with Medicaid to promote access to the system of services for CYSHCN.
The Catalyst Center hosted a webinar on June 14, 2022, that presented foundational knowledge about Medicaid for Title V staff and their allies. Catalyst Center staff explained the basics of Medicaid including the eligibility pathways to Medicaid coverage for kids and a benefit for children unique to Medicaid called EPSDT that is crucial for access to care for CYSHCN.
Please click the links below to access the webinar recording, slide deck, and a document with follow-up resources and Q&A responses.
The recent Child Tax Credit (CTC) expansion is expected to improve the economic security of millions of families in the U.S., including families raising children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN). While many families will receive the expanded tax credit automatically, others of the most vulnerable families need to take action to access the financial support.
On August 24 at 2pm ET, the Catalyst Center hosted a webinar explaining the expanded CTC and the role that Title V and Family Leader organizations might play in assisting families in accessing this support.
The webinar program featured presentations by Elaine Maag, Principal Research Associate, Tax Policy Center, Urban Institute and Brookings Institution; Stacy Collins, Associate Director, Health Systems Transformation at AMCHP; and Isabel Dickson, Economic Mobility Specialist of the Maternal and Child Health Program at the Colorado Department of Health and Environment.
Below, you can access a recording of the webinar, presentation slides, and a page of resources related to the expanded CTC.
On May 10th at the 2019 Family Voices Leadership conference, the Catalyst Center presented on a Partnership Opportunities Panel. The slides detail our work as the National Center on Health Insurance Coverage and Financing of Care for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs, how we partner with families and youth leaders, and upcoming opportunities for collaboration.
On March 10th at the 2019 Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs (AMCHP) conference, the Catalyst Center presented an infographic series on the fundamentals of financing the system of care for CYSHCN.
The presentation reviews the rationale for the infographic series, key content in each infographic, and explores how infographics can be used to communicate effectively with various stakeholders.
The Catalyst Center has created an infographic series exploring key focus areas in the world of health care financing and coverage for children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN). Each infographic offers a concise look at a complex issue from the perspective of CYSHCN, their families, payers and policymakers, and providers.
These one-pagers are a visually appealing and easy way to share information about the system of care for CYSHCN with stakeholders. Resources for further topic exploration are listed at the bottom of the infographic. Infographic topics include: Medicaid, pathways to Medicaid coverage, EPSDT, inequities in coverage and financing, family financial hardship, the importance of partnerships, family engagement, value-based purchasing, and care coordination.
Thanks to the following family leaders and Title V colleagues for reviewing this project and providing valuable feedback: Cara Coleman, Donene Feist, Janis Guerney, Rylin Rodgers, Nora Wells, Sandra Broughton, Elizabeth Collins, Elaine Gabovitch, Alison Martin, Shirley Payne, and Meredith Pyle.
The Catalyst Center has created a one-page infographic illustrating the importance of partnerships in advancing financing and coverage for children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN). This infographic provides a brief explanation of the power of partnerships and highlights examples of partnerships with important stakeholders.
This is one page in a series of infographics exploring key focus areas in the world of health care financing and coverage for CYSHCN.
These one-pagers are a visually appealing and easy way to share information about the system of care for CYSHCN with stakeholders. Resources for further information about leveraging partnerships for CYSHCN are listed at the bottom of the infographic.
This article, published in the December 2015 issue of the Maternal and Child Health Journal, describes the process and results of a survey of parents and caregivers whose children with disabilities were enrolled in Louisiana Family Opportunity Act (FOA) Medicaid Buy-in program. Results suggest that the Louisiana FOA program fills a niche in coverage needs among families of children with disabilities in Louisiana; however, small sample size and significant differences between the sample enrolled in the FOA and the comparison groups limits how generalizable the results are.
This article, published in the Journal of Child Health Care, describes the process and results of a survey of parents and caregivers whose children with disabilities were enrolled in CommonHealth, the state’s Medicaid Buy-in program. Results suggest that the MassHealth CommonHealth program improves access to care for children with disabilities overall; however, the article identifies barriers to address in five domains to improve accessibility.
Value-based purchasing and value-based insurance design are gaining increasing attention as strategies for reducing health care spending and improving health outcomes – “value” being the operative concept. However, there is not enough evidence to date regarding the effectiveness of these strategies; what does exist is primarily focused on interventions impacting adults. This primer focuses on opportunities to increase value in spending on health services for children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN) through select alternative payment mechanisms and delivery innovations, and potential roles for Title V and family leaders in these efforts.
The Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) encourages state Title V programs to partner with families, consumer groups, and others to advance their chosen National Performance Measures (NPMs). As the MCHB-funded national center for health insurance and financing of care, the Catalyst Center researches and disseminates state-level financing strategies aimed at improving health insurance coverage for children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN). Our work aligns with NPM #15: “Adequate Insurance Coverage: percent of children ages 0 through 17 who are adequately insured.” This policy brief describes Title V, family leader organization, and Medicaid partnerships that can help states make progress on improving access to adequate insurance for CYSHCN.