Before Back-to-School: Medicaid Financing of Early Childhood Home Visiting Programs
By Katharine Witgert
September 2012
It’s back-to-school time in many families, but kids – and moms – can benefit from teaching and learning much earlier in life, too. Home visits to new and expectant mothers help ensure that both mothers and children receive needed health services and can improve health and life outcomes in cost-effective ways. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) raised the profile of home visiting through the Maternal Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program. Funding from MIECHV allows all 50 states to test home visiting models and expand those that meet standards of effectiveness. MIECHV’s $1.5 billion funding is available for five years. Medicaid is onepossible source of funding to help bring evidence-based home visiting programs to scale and ensure their long-term sustainability.
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For individuals living with complex, often chronic conditions, and their families, palliative care can provide relief from symptoms, improve satisfaction and outcomes, and help address critical mental and spiritual needs during difficult times. Now more than ever, there is growing recognition of the importance of palliative care services for individuals with serious illness, such as advance care planning, pain and symptom management, care coordination, and team-based, multi-disciplinary support. These services can help patients and families cope with the symptoms and stressors of disease, better anticipate and avoid crises, and reduce unnecessary and/or unwanted care. While this model is grounded in evidence that demonstrates improved quality of life, better outcomes, and reduced cost for patients, only a fraction of individuals who could benefit from palliative care receive it. 























































































































































