Public Policy
Policy Priorities to Support Children with Special Health Care Needs and Disabilities and Their Families
Our Strategic Policy Priorities
Children and youth with special health care needs and disabilities, and their families, face systemic barriers and biases that impede their ability to experience their best possible lives. Systems of care do not respond to their needs holistically or facilitate access to supports that enhance their quality of life.
To make the most impact, we focus our policy actions across all levels of government – federal, state, and local. We work with our family and organizational partners to lean on the various levers of policy change through education and advocacy.
Our current policy agenda includes:
- Expand access to peer-to-peer support for families of children and youth with special health care needs
- Support and expand Medicaid coverage for children and youth with special health care needs and their families and caregivers
- Improve the transition to adult health care for youth and young adults with disabilities and their caregivers and families
- Eliminate language access barriers
Family Voices collaborates with national child health and disability organizations, such as the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities, The Arc, Autism Speaks, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and other groups.
Recent Policy Briefs
Recent Policy-Related News
Your Input Sought/Announcement/Of Possible Interest (Washington Update, October 11, 2018)
Your Input Sought Survey on Attending Genetics Appointments after Referrals Open until Oct. 12 The NYMAC (New York-Mid-Atlantic Regional Genetics Network) -- one of seven regional networks in the country funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration – is...
For Those Assisting Victims of Hurricane Florence (Washington Update, October 3, 2018)
[From Health Insurance Marketplace email of 9/20/18. No URL found for this info.] Attention Assisters Who Are Helping Consumers Impacted By Hurricane Florence: Special Enrollment Period Available for Victims of 2018 Hurricane Florence On August 9, 2018, CMS released...
Webinars from the Field (Washington Update, October 3, 2018)
Show Me the Money -- Innovative Funding Approaches to Promote Health Equity Wednesday, October 3, 1:00-2:30 pm ET Trust for America’s Health/Dialogue4Health/Public Health Institute NEW Twitter chat #HealthyLatinos Thursday, October 4, 2:00 pm ET Follow @MinorityHealth...
THE ADMINISTRATION (Washington Update, October 3, 2018)
Julie Hocker joins ACL as Commissioner of the Administration on Disabilities (Administration on Community Living Newsroom, 10/1/18). More on the Proposed “Public Charge” Rule For many months it has been expected that the administration would issue a rule redefining...
CONGRESS: Opioid Legislation/Appropriations (Washington Update, October 3, 2018)
Opioid Legislation On September 28, by a vote of 393-8, the House passed a bill to address the nation’s opioid epidemic – the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act, or the SUPPORT for Patients...
Legislation
The legislation tracked below is for informational purposes only. It is not meant to be an endorsement for or against the legislation. Action updates may occur daily, if actions are taken by Congress. Newly introduced legislation will be added weekly.
The legislative tracker is sorted by latest action. To navigate this page, you can scroll through just as you would a normal webpage. You can also click Ctrl+F on your keyboard and type in the search box.
For additional information and to read the full text (if available), click the highlighted bill number. You can also navigate to Congress.gov and search using key terms or phrases, or the bill numbers listed below.
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