Making Maternal and Child Health a Priority
This fact sheet looks at state policy choices that promote access to health care for mothers and children. The fact sheet, produced by the National Center for Children in Poverty, summarizes what the research says about early childhood health and maternal health. The summary is followed by a discussion of the current landscape, including the percentage of young children from families with low incomes who are without health insurance, the number of states where 80 percent or more of children enrolled in Medicaid receive an annual Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment (EPSDT) health screen, Medicaid and State Children's Health Insurance Program income eligibility for children ages 1-5, and Medicaid income-eligibility levels for working parents.

Food and Beverage Marketing to Children: What Changes are Needed to Promote Healthy Eating Habits?
The November 2008 brief summarizes the latest research about the ubiquity of food and beverage marketing targeting youth and how marketing may impact their dietary patterns and health. the Brief was prepared for Healthy Eating research, a project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Access the report here.  

Almost There: Covering the Remaining Uninsured Children in Rhode Island
The October 2008 report, written by New England Alliance for Children's Health, a project of Community Catalyst in partnership with Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, provides a comprehensive look at who Rhode Island's 17,000 uninsured children are, and discusses strategies for bolstering and strengthening employer sponsored coverage as well as RIte Care and RIte Share. The report concludes with recommendations to "finish the job" for our uninsured children. View full text of the report, and the executive summary.

Innovations in Performance Measurement and Public Reporting are Closing the Health Care Quality Disparities Gap
The Issue Brief presents a portfolio of best practices in using data to eliminate disparities in outpatient care. It details steps toward integrating a reduction of health care disparities into the public reporting agenda as well as into quality measurement practices. View the full Issue Brief here.

SCHIP and Adolescents: An Overview and Opportunities for States
This State Health Policy Briefing paper provides an overview of adolescents' distinct health care needs and offers guidance on how to tailor state SCHIP programs to better target the health care needs of low-income adolescents. Outreach, benefits, service delivery, and quality measurement and improvement are all SCHIP program elements that can be examined and tailored to meet the needs of adolescents.

Rhode Island and National Data
This data from the National Survey of Children's Health, 2003 (NSCH) examines the physical and emotional health of children ages 0-17 years of age. Special emphasis is placed on factors that may relate to well-being of children, including medical homes, family interactions, parental health, school and after-school experiences, and safe neighborhoods.

The National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN) provides a consistent source of both national- and state-level data on the size and characteristics of the population of CSHCN. The survey provides detailed information on the prevalence of CSHCN in the nation and in each state, the demographic characteristics of these children, the types of health and support services they and their families need, and their access to and satisfaction with the care they receive.

Dental Providers Accepting Medical Assistance (Medicaid and RIte Care) List Updated
This list can be used to find a dental provider who accepts Medical Assistance in Rhode Island. There are two versions - one in English and one in Spanish. The new versions include contact information for the new dental centers that have opened since the last version in 2005, as well as contact information for the RIte Smiles program

Quality Care for Special Kids: Profiles of Children with Chronic Conditions and Disabilities, Update #6 
This April 2007brief, the sixth in a series on critical issues involved in caring for children with special health care needs, notes that 40 percent of children with special health care needs enrolled in commercial health insurance plans have an emotional or behavioral disorder. Of these children, 34 percent have a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) alone, and an additional 22 percent have ADHD along with another chronic condition. Children with ADHD receive most of their care from primary care clinicians and use significantly more health care services than do children without ADHD. The brief lists some newly developed health care tools that health plans can use to help ensure that treatment for these children is delivered efficiently and appropriately in primary care offices.

Program Brief: Child Health Research Findings
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)'s Program Brief summarizes findings from recent projects focused on children and adolescents. Reseach topics include adolescent health, asthma, mental health, newborns and infants, obesity/overweight, oral health and preventive services.