Child Health and Disability Prevention program phased out to streamline services under the CalAIM initiative

At a glance:

• The Child Health and Disability Prevention (CHDP) program has been phased out, and services were transitioned to other systems effective July 1, 2024.
• Medi-Cal will handle provider trainings and facility site reviews to ensure compliance with preventive care screenings.

Overview

The California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) phased out the (CHDP) program and transitioned services to other delivery systems effective July 1, 2024. This transition simplified and streamlined the delivery of services to children and youth under the age of 21 in alignment with the goals of the CalAIM initiative.

Prior to July 1, 2024, the CHDP program included:

• Preventive health, vision and dental screening, and care coordination for fee-for-service (FFS) members eligible for Medi-Cal for Kids & Teens, federally known as the early and periodic screening, diagnostic, and treatment (EPSDT) benefit.
• CHDP Gateway, which serves as a presumptive eligibility (PE) entry point for children to receive temporary preventive, primary, and specialty healthcare coverage through the Medi-Cal fee-for-service (FFS) delivery system.
• Responsibility for provider trainings on well-child preventive care screenings that included anthropometric measurements, dental screenings/fluoride varnish application, and audiometric and vision screenings.
• Responsibility for facility and medical record reviews of CHDP program provider sites.

Effective July 1, 2024:

• The CHDP programs and EPSDT services are covered in both the FFS and managed care delivery systems.
• PE services will continue and expand under the new children’s presumptive eligibility (CPE) platform, and PE services for individuals over the age of 19 will continue under hospital presumptive eligibility (HPE).
• Managed care plans shall ensure that ongoing provider trainings on well-child preventive care screenings outlined above are conducted.
• Managed care plans shall conduct the facility site and medical record reviews (FSR/MRRs) of former CHDP program providers who are also primary care providers seeing Medi-Cal members during their periodic managed care FSR/MRRs.

Additional information about the CHDP program transition can be found here.

Provider trainings and medical record documentation

In an effort to ensure providers comply with required provider trainings and medical record documentation on well-child preventive care screenings, we developed/compiled the following provider resources:

Medi-Cal Managed Care for FSR and MRRs

DHCS requires managed care plans to conduct initial and subsequent facility and medical record reviews of primary care provider sites to ensure all contracted PCP sites have sufficient capacity to provide appropriate primary healthcare services and can maintain patient safety standards and practices. During the facility site reviews, reviewers shall assess staff competencies on well-child preventive care screenings as part of the CHDP program transition to ensure screenings are done appropriately. Please access the FSR MRR Preparation Checklist for more information on how your clinic can successfully complete managed care reviews.