Children with special health care needs (CSHCN) have or are at increased risk for a chronic physical, developmental, behavioral, or emotional condition and require health and related services of a type or amount beyond that required by children generally. On kidsdata.org, indicators related to the impacts of special health care needs on children and families include difficulties faced by CSHCN in and out of school, and impacts on their families' time, employment, finances, and parenting.

Nearly 1.4 million California children and youth, and more than 14 million nationwide, have or are at increased risk for a chronic health condition and require care and related services of a type or amount beyond that required by children generally (1). Their ongoing health problems—physical, behavioral, or developmental—can affect their ability to function and participate in important educational and social activities, and, in some cases, can shorten their lives (2, 3). Although advances in medical care have extended and improved the lives of millions of children, obtaining timely, appropriate, and affordable care remains a problem for many families (2, 3). More than 4 in 5 children with special health care needs (CSHCN) statewide and nationally do not receive care that meets federal standards for a well-functioning system (4). Further, racial/ethnic and socioeconomic inequities in access to care and other supports can lead to poorer outcomes for vulnerable CSHCN and their families (2, 3).

When compared with children who do not have special health care needs, CSHCN are more likely to experience social-emotional problems, academic challenges, and other types of adversity which can complicate their medical care (2, 3). As a result, CSHCN often rely on a range of services from multiple sectors, and their parents and family members often face higher caregiving burdens and experience more stress and difficulties with employment and finances when compared with other families (2, 3). For example, parents of CSHCN may need to cut back their work hours or give up a job, at the same time that they face higher than average out-of-pocket medical expenses (2, 3, 5). Families of CSHCN may also spend significant time providing care, learning about their child's condition and available treatments, and coordinating their child's care across providers and services (5).

In 2016-2019, an estimated 45% of California children with special health care needs (CSHCN) ages 6-17 had missed more than 3 days of school in the previous year because of illness or injury, and 14% had missed more than 10 school days. Statewide, an estimated 6.6% of school-aged CSHCN had repeated at least one grade in school since entering kindergarten, compared with 3.9% of their peers without special health care needs.

According to estimates from the same survey, 19% of California CSHCN ages 0-17 had family members who cut back or stopped working in the previous year because of their child's health, and 12% had family members who avoided changing jobs in the previous year because of concerns about maintaining health insurance.

More than one in five California CSHCN (21%) had parents who felt aggravation from parenting in the previous month, compared with 16% of CSHCN nationally, 2.9% of non-CSHCN in California, and 2.3% of non-CSHCN nationwide, according to 2016-2019 estimates.

Children with special health care needs (CSHCN), like all young people, need ready access to appropriate physical and mental health care, educational opportunities, and, sometimes, social services and other support. CSHCN, especially those with more complex conditions, may face challenges in obtaining timely access to pediatric subspecialty providers and receiving comprehensive, coordinated, high-quality health care (1, 2). They also are more likely than children without special needs to experience psychosocial problems, difficulties with school, and other life challenges (1, 2). Their families, too, often experience significant caregiving burdens and economic, employment, and personal stress in excess of families without CSHCN (1, 2). While most CSHCN do not receive all aspects of quality health care, inequities in access to care and other resources are especially pronounced for children of color and low-income children (1, 2).

Policies and programs to promote the health and well being of CSHCN and their families should address:

• Comprehensive and consistent health care coverage: CSHCN need comprehensive health insurance that provides adequate medical and mental health coverage, including access to specialty care providers. These children also need consistent coverage, without gaps that can cause delays or problems receiving critical services. Appropriate reimbursement is critical to maintaining an adequate provider network (1, 3, 4).
• High quality, well coordinated, and consistent services: CSHCN benefit from evidence-based health care services provided in the context of a medical home that assures high quality, well-coordinated care, including effective use of electronic health information and collaboration across health, community, school, and home-based support services (1, 2, 5).
• Family-centered care: Families are the most central and enduring influence in children's lives, and CSHCN depend on their families to carry out health management plans agreed upon with providers. Families’ values, beliefs, goals, and priorities should help guide care plans and families should be included as partners in decision-making (1, 2).
• Early and frequent screening: Systematic screenings for special health care needs beginning early in a child's life have the potential to reduce long-term consequences of some chronic conditions. Such screenings help identify problems early and can provide an opportunity to assess the needs and strengths of families, as part of providing tailored and family-centered care (2, 5).
• Inclusion: Providing CSHCN with opportunities for inclusion with other children in academic, social, and recreational settings is critical to their development and can maximize achievement and quality of life (6).
• Support for transitions to adulthood: As CSHCN age, they need support from health care, educational, and social service systems to successfully transition to adulthood. For example, they may need assistance to move from school to work or post-secondary education, from pediatric care to adult health care, and from family dependency to self-sufficiency (5, 6).
• Financing of care: Families of CSHCN must navigate a complicated web of service systems with dueling eligibility criteria and confusing payment policies. This can result in delayed or denied services for children and financial hardship for families. State policy must work toward a unified, efficient, and comprehensive payment system for health care and developmental services, as well as ensuring adequate funding for public systems serving CSHCN (3, 7).