Eight states are participating in a project from the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) that aims to break down the silos and the barriers that exist among different agencies and better connect Medicaid to early childhood programs.
An infant is born into poverty, and then later, as a young child, may interact with multiple different government agencies and systems—not only Medicaid, but also perinatal health care, early intervention, child care, preschool education, and more.
Recognizing that intervening early in life can improve the trajectory of adulthood by reducing adverse childhood experiences and improving the factors that contribute to poor social determinants of health (such as inadequate housing, food insecurity, or income), 8 states are participating in a project from the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) that aims to break down the silos and the barriers that exist among different agencies and better connect Medicaid to early childhood programs.
“Unless you start way upstream, you’re not going to prevent this stuff. You’re just going to be treating it,” said Stephen A. Somers, PhD, CHCS’ president, chief executive officer, and founder.
However, intervening early to address the factors that can affect health later, even into adulthood, as one 2010 landmark study examining the relationship between childhood poverty and adult outcomes found, is not a strategy of Medicaid, despite its prevalence in the lives of American children.
The focus on prevention and intervention came after earlier work showed that so-called “super utilizers” of health services like emergency department visits and inpatient services had challenging backgrounds.
It’s an issue that has been the focus of professionals in this field for a while now.
To read the full article, written by Allison Inserro, click HERE
Comments (0)