Whole-Family Wellness for Early Childhood: A New Model for Medi-Cal Delivery and Financing

Brief  •  Sep 24, 2019

Summary

California needs a system of care for Medi-Cal eligible infants and toddlers that is grounded in family wellness and community, this paper co-released by First 5 Center and California Children’s Trust asserts. It outlines flaws in the current system and proposes a new model that would draw on CBOs, county-operated clinics, FQHCs, and primary care practices to provide peer support and age-appropriate models for attachment and bonding, as well as resources to address broader social needs. "Children cannot be healthy and grow well unless their caregivers have the internal and external resources to give them safe and loving care,” says co-author Alicia F. Lieberman, Ph.D, Irving B. Harris Endowed Chair in Infant Mental Health, and Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry. "We hope this paper provides impetus to fund interventions that help the whole child and the whole family."

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Whole-Family Wellness for Early Childhood: A New Model for Medi-Cal Delivery and Financing

Executive Summary

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