Santa
Barbara County Children's Medical Services (CMS) plays an important
role in assuring the health of California's children by administering
special health care services. Community organizations can learn
about these services and how to refer children and families by
looking around the CMS Web Site. CMS is a collaborative agency
and is open to your direct contact with questions and referrals.
CMS has a close relationship with Santa Barbara County Schools,
Public Health Department, Departments of Social Services and Alcohol,
Drug & Mental Health, as well as the Tri-Counties Regional Center.
Below are very brief descriptions of the programs CMS offers.
Please click on the titles in the side bar to view a comprehensive
definition of each service.
Child Health and Disability Prevention Program: CHDP
CHDP pays for well child examinations, developmental screening and immunizations at regular intervals for children who meet financial limits, (families earning less than 200% of the Federal poverty level) or have Medi-Cal insurance. These services are provided in private medical offices, community clinics and County Clinics. Most Pediatricians and many Family Practitioners are certified providers. While the regular schedule of visits is strict, exceptions are made for children entering Head Start or Elementary School, children with CCS Medical conditions and children in Foster Care. Children going to summer camp or participating in organized sports are also eligible for exams off the schedule. Coverage under the Healthy Families Program includes Well Child Care therefore, these children are not eligible for CHDP examinations.
California Children Services: CCS
CCS has five special services for children (0-21 years) with special health care needs. Although families can self refer and Community Organizations can refer children, CCS is a medically based program that requires medical reports and prescriptions for services from a physician as an essential part of the process. Therefore, when referring a family, it is important that you inform the family that medical reports and orders must be provided to CCS. The five parts of CCS are:
High Risk Infant Follow Up: HRIF
High Risk Infant Follow Up: HRIF offers high risk infants comprehensive developmental assessments and vision and hearing screening up to three years of age. Infants who are born with a risk factor(s) for physical developmental problems may qualify for this service. The goal is to identify infants and toddlers with delays and refer them for early developmental services to prevent serious physical disability. Infants who meet medical eligibility criteria are evaluated with no or minimal charge to the family. Reports are sent to the child's physician for review and appropriate action.
The CCS Diagnostic Program refers and pays for evaluations by medical specialists and tests when a child may have a serious medical condition. This program is available to families who have no health insurance, families who have Healthy Families or Medi-Cal insurance and families whose health insurance denies in writing a CCS covered diagnostic service. Not all medical conditions or diseases are eligible, only the very serious.
The CCS Treatment Program provides comprehensive Case Management for children with serious, potentially life threatening or disabling medical conditions or diseases. Case Management means that a team of professionals at CCS helps families and their doctors obtain the best possible medical care for the child. Sometimes this means arranging visits to Special Care Centers or purchasing medical equipment for the home. The child must have a medically eligible condition or disease and the family must meet certain financial and residential criteria.
The MTP provides Physical and Occupational Therapy to children with certain physical (neuromuscular or orthopedic) conditions or diseases. These services are provided free of charge or at minimal cost. They are offered in special locations (Medical Therapy Units) associated with schools. In addition, consultation may occur in the classroom and home.
