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
House Appropriations Committee Approved FY 2019 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Bill (Washington Update, July 18, 2018)
Last week, the full House Appropriations Committee approved a bill to provide FY 2019 funding for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. In total, the draft bill includes $177.1 billion in discretionary funding, essentially the same as the...
Senate Finance Committee Holds Hearing on Paid Family Leave (Washington Update, July 18, 2018)
On July 11, the U.S. Senate Finance Committee’s Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy held a hearing – “Examining the Importance of Paid Family Leave for American Working Families.” Among the witnesses was Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), who testified...
Upcoming Webinars from the Field (Washington Update, July 18, 2018)
EPSDT Education for Providers and Advocates Wednesday, July 18, 1:00-2:30 ET Georgetown Center on Children and Families and the American Academy of Pediatrics NEW Health Action Webinar: The Impacts of Family Separation on Child and Family Health Wednesday, July...
Medicaid/CHIP News (Washington Update, July 18, 2018)
More than 7,000 fail to meet Medicaid work requirements in Arkansas (The Hill, 07/16/18) WORTH REPEATING: Medicaid Social Media Toolkit The American Association on Health & Disability has developed a social media toolkit for Medicaid. The toolkit provides sample...
Affordable Care Act (ACA) and TRICARE News (Washington Update, July 18, 2018)
CMS to Reduce Funding for ACA Navigators Last week the administration announced that it will significantly reduce funding for ACA Navigators for the next open enrollment period (Nov. 1-Dec. 15, 2018, for 2019 plans). (See the CMS press release.) The Funding...
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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