The Importance of Preventive Care for Children and Adolescents
At Canopy Health, we recognize that quality healthcare extends far beyond your clients to include entire families, neighborhoods, and the Bay Area as a whole. And if our community is to continue to thrive and create new opportunities for future generations, we need to ensure that our children are receiving the proper preventive care to support their health and wellness, and we need to brighten their attitude toward proper nutrition, a balanced diet, and regular exercise as they grow into adolescence and adulthood.
Promoting a family-friendly atmosphere is an important part of building compassionate and productive relationships with your clients, and part of that involves advocating for the health and wellness of your clients’ children, especially when it comes to preventive care — which focuses on disease prevention rather than treatment and is a vital element of maintaining a healthy lifestyle for both adults and children.
Covered Preventive Healthcare Services
Under the Affordable Care Act (and, by extension, Covered California), all health plans in the individual and small group markets are now required to provide 10 essential health benefits, including preventive care, wellness services, and chronic disease management (even if the insured has not met their yearly deductible). According to HealthCare.gov, there are 27 specific preventive healthcare services for children and adolescents that do not require a copayment or co-insurance and do not require meeting your deductible:
- Alcohol and drug use assessments for adolescents
- Autism screening for children at 18 and 24 months
- Behavioral assessments for children ages:
- 0-11 months
- 1-4 years
- 5-10 years
- 11-14 years
- 15-17 years
- Blood pressure screening for children ages:
- 0-11 months
- 1-4 years
- 5-10 years
- 11-14 years
- 15-17 years
- Cervical dysplasia screening for sexually active females
- Depression screening for adolescents
- Developmental screening for children under age 3
- Dyslipidemia screening for children at higher risk of lipid disorders ages
- 1-4 years
- 5-10 years
- 11-14 years
- 15-17 years
- Fluoride chemoprevention supplements for children without fluoride in their water source
- Gonorrhea preventive medication for the eyes of all newborns
- Hearing screening for all newborns
- Height, weight, and body mass index (BMI) measurements for children ages:
- 0-11 months
- 1-4 years
- 5-10 years
- 11-14 years
- 15-17 years
- Hematocrit or hemoglobin screening for all children
- Newborn screening for sickle cell or other hemoglobinopathies
- Hepatitis B screening for adolescents at high risk, including adolescents from countries with 2% or more Hepatitis B prevalence and U.S-born adolescents who were not vaccinated as infants and with at least one parent born in a region with 8% or more Hepatitis B prevalence:
- 11-17 years.
- HIV screening for adolescents at higher risk for the disease
- Hypothyroidism screening for newborns
- Immunization vaccines for children from birth to age 18 (doses, recommended ages, and recommended populations vary):
- Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis (Whooping Cough)
- Haemophilus influenzae type b
- Hepatitis A
- Hepatitis B
- Human Papillomavirus
- Inactivated Poliovirus
- Influenza (flu shot)
- Measles
- Meningococcal
- Pneumococcal
- Rotavirus
- Varicella (Chickenpox)
- Iron supplements for children ages 6-12 months at risk for anemia
- Lead screening for children at risk of exposure
- Medical history for all children throughout development ages
- 0-11 months
- 1-4 years
- 5-10 years
- 11-14 years
- 15-17 years
- Obesity screening and counseling
- Oral health risk assessment for young children ages
- 0-11 months
- 1-4 years
- 5-10 years
- 11-14 years
- 15-17 years
- Phenylketonuria (PKU) screening for newborns
- Sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention counseling and screening for adolescents at higher risk
- Tuberculin testing for children at higher risk of tuberculosis ages
- 0-11 months
- 1-4 years
- 5-10 years
- 11-14 years
- 15-17 years
- Vision screening for all children
The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Even if your clients are unable to purchase healthcare for themselves or their families, their children might still be eligible to receive health insurance through the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) — a low-cost program for children in families that exceed the income threshold for Medi-Cal. (Pregnant women might also be eligible for Medi-Cal based on their income.) CHIP and Medi-Cal enrollment is open all year, and your clients can determine their eligibility for these programs by visiting the Covered Californiawebsite.
Preventive Care Leads to a More Vibrant Community
Too often, medical care is focused on the treatment of disease rather than prevention. By focusing on preventive healthcare from a young age, your clients and their families can learn proactive healthcare approaches that will help improve their children’s health and wellness while also instilling lifelong positive attitudes toward physical, mental, and emotional health.
References:
Children’s health coverage programs in California. (n.d.). InsureKidsNow.gov. Retrieved from https://www.insurekidsnow.gov
Preventive healthcare benefits for children. (n.d.). HealthCare.gov. Retrieved from https://www.healthcare.gov/preventive-care-children/
The Children’s Health Insurance Program. (n.d.). HealthCare.gov. Retrieved from https://www.healthcare.gov/medicaid-chip/childrens-health-insurance-program/