Children with Special

Healthcare Needs (CSHCN)

CHCFC is involved in multiple projects for children with special healthcare needs. Current projects are funded by the California HealthCare Foundation and the Medi-Cal Policy Institute. Current research and policy work focuses on care coordination, access to specialists, and quality improvement activities that target children with special health care needs. One focus area is on improving care coordination for children with complex medical conditions who are in Medicaid (Medi-Cal) and Healthy Families, many of whom are receiving care through health plans. Center staff undertakes systematic reviews of existing care coordination by California Children’s Services (CCS) and health plans in California, and by an analysis of gaps and the incentives necessary to provide better care coordination to this population.

Other work on CSHCN at the Center focuses on children’s access to specialty care within Medi-Cal and Healthy Families. Most current data on children’s access in California are anecdotal, limited to specific sites or provider groups, or limited in their scope and attention to the needs of children with chronic illness. Center staff measure children’s access and evaluate disparities using newly available population-based data on children’s access in California from two surveys -- the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), and the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Center staff is also fielding a new survey of parents about their child’s access to specialty care and to a medical home.

Press Release:
National Public Health Survey Shows Nearly 1 in 5 U.S. Children with Special Health Care Needs Lack Personal Physician
 

Report:

Experiences in Health Care for California Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN)

This report provides new California data on access to care for CSHCN and compares the care children in Medi-Cal receive to the care received by other children in California and in other state Medicaid programs. 

For additional information, please contact Moira Inkelas, PhD, Assistant Director, CHCFC and Adjunct Assistant Professor, UCLA School of Public Health.