This newsletter was sent July 18, 2017. If you’d like to receive our next bi-weekly digest full of a curated collection of resources, workshops, policy highlights, and action items that affect children and youth with special health care needs, please sign up here.

Reminder: use our resources to tell legislators why Medi-Cal is critical for children and youth with special health care needs and urge them to preserve Medicaid. Also see: updated crosswalk of bill provisions, summary of findings, and implementation timeline (all via NASHP).

Project Leadership graduate Alison Beier and family were invited to attend Speak Now for Kids’ Family Advocacy Day on behalf of UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital July 12-13. Each year, families from children’s hospitals across the country travel to Washington, D.C. to meet with their legislators and discuss pressing health care issues. Seven-year-old Evan Beier was born with multiple congenital anomalies, and he and his mom stressed the importance of Medicaid funding, mental health access, In-Home Supportive Services, and more.

To read Alison’s full recap and learn how the Project Leadership program helped shape her focus, click here.

Parent Survey: Rollover Of Select Kids In California Children’s Services Into Medi-Cal Managed Care Plans: How Can We Help You?

If your child receives California Children’s Services (CCS) in one of these 21 counties, Family Voices Of California invites you to share your questions, concerns, and let us know how we might assist you in the coming year.

No sooner than July 1, 2018, The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) will begin transitioning kids currently enrolled in CCS in the above 21 counties into Medi-Cal managed care plans.

By implementing this new Whole Child Model, the DHCS hopes to integrate health care for children and youth with special health care needs. To take the survey, click here. For more information about the Whole Child Model click here, and for county-specific phase-in information click here.

RESOURCES

CDC Releases 2016 Chartbook On Long-Term Health Trends

The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention (CDC) has released their 40th annual health trends report that presents an overview of national trends in health statistics. It also contains 141 trend tables organized around four major subject areas: health status and determinants, health care utilization, health care resources, and health care expenditures. To read the report, click here.

New Learning Module: Communicating The Importance Of Developmental Screening

The Association Of Maternal & Child Health Programs (AMCHP) has released a new learning module on the value of developmental screening. It includes four steps to promote early identification, speaker perspectives, and various resources. To view the module, click here.

OPPORTUNITY FOR INPUT

Public Comment Period For Healthy People 2030 Framework Now Open

Healthy People provides 10-year, science-based national objectives for improving health that reflect input from a diverse group of individuals and organizations. The team is requesting comments on the proposed framework for Healthy People 2030, which refers to its vision, mission, foundational principles, plan of action, and overarching goals. For more information, click here.

Women With Epilepsy Conference To Take Place Saturday In Castro Valley

The Epilepsy Foundation Of Northern California will host its first-ever Bay Area conference this Saturday from 9 a.m – 2 p.m. The ‘Living With Epilepsy’ event is open to all women with epilepsy as well as caregivers, friends, and the public. Cost is $25 per adult, $10 per child (4-12). For more information, click here.

WEBINARS

Mental Health Parity: Assuring Equal Access To Treatment For Children And Youth In California

Family Voices Of California will host a webinar on August 16 detailing the necessary strategies to overcome insurance company discrimination. Attendees will learn about federal and state mental health parity laws and how to appeal the denial of insurance coverage. To register and learn more, click here.