Health care initiatives need to keep children in mind
The Iowa High Quality Healthcare Initiative presents an opportunity for increasing access and quality of care to enrolled Iowans while delivering cost savings to the overall health care system. In doing so, it is imperative this effort makes recognizing the unique health care needs of infants, children and adolescents a priority. Children are at risk for being less of a priority due to only accounting for 19 percent of total Medicaid expenditures, despite comprising 57 percent of the Iowa Medicaid population. Aligning service delivery and quality improvement practices with recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatricians demonstrates a commitment to prioritizing Iowa children.
The AAP recommends defining medical necessity as "health interventions for children that promote normal growth and development and prevent, diagnose and treat the effects of all conditions, injuries or disabilities." This definition lays the foundation for which children are able access to quality services when they need them.
It is hopeful during this modernization process that children's unique health care needs be modernized as well.