Advances for children and adolescents with behavioral disorders are occurring every day.

 

TREATMENT WORKS

• We have scientific knowledge of treatment approaches that work with children and adolescents.
• The "system of care" philosophy—developed for the seriously emotionally disturbed (SED) population—now has been largely accepted by providers, families, and professionals specializing in care for SED children and youth. The system of care philosophy is "a comprehensive spectrum of mental health services and other necessary services which are organized into a coordinated network to meet the multiple and changing needs of children and adolescents with severe emotional disturbances and their families."
• Services are available to children and adolescents along a continuum of care designed to meet their individualized needs.

NEW APPROACHES TO FUNDING AND COVERAGE ARE EVOLVING

• In the 1980s states began to experiment with a variety of approaches designed to finance mental health services for children. These efforts have involved identifying new avenues of funding under Medicaid, accessing child welfare entitlement funding, and integrating services and funding streams across child-serving agencies.
• More than half the states have now enacted some form of legislation providing parity coverage for mental disorders on par with coverage for physical disorders.

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For more information,
see Enhancing Youth Services by the Lewin Group
for the National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems
202/393-6700

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NAPHS
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Phone: 202/393-6700
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