Transparency in Health Care for Youth in Foster Care
The Imprint is highlighting each of the policy recommendations made this year by the participants of the Foster Youth Internship Program, a group of eight former foster youth who have completed congressional internships.
The annual program is overseen by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that raises awareness about the needs of children without families. Each of the participants crafted a policy recommendation during their time in Washington, D.C.
Today we highlight the recommendation from Christian Bell, a veteran and graduate of Piedmont University.
The Proposal
Bell argues for federal transparency requirements around financial agreements and coverage plans in states that choose to contract with managed-care Medicaid providers. This would be accomplished through an amendment to the Title IV-B program that requires public plans attesting to certain training and contracting standards, along with funding to implement that requirement.
The Argument
All youth in foster care are categorically eligible for and enrolled in Medicaid, which most states deliver using traditional fee-for-service models. But several states have entered into managed care contracts, and Bell cites recent studies describing the opaque nature of those agreements and what services are available to children. Bell writes that there have been “significant and credible reports of contracted insurers rejecting payment of needed health services, resulting in barriers to access for children and subsequent preventable negative health outcomes.”
In Their Own Words
“Despite being in my parents’ care, my niece had to rely on the state Medicaid system run by a private insurer. At an early age, she developed a severe speech impediment and waited nearly sixteen months for Medicaid to provide access to an appropriate speech and language pathologist for an initial screening.”
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