Our Vision

Our Vision

All children in California receive the support they need for healthy development and social and emotional well-being.

Why Our Children Need a Better Approach

We Need A Better Approach

Consider the Numbers

Only 5%
of children with Medi-Cal receive a behavioral health service
Only 35%
of youth in California who report needing mental health support actually receive it
43rd
is California’s ranking in providing behavioral, social and developmental screenings, which are key to identifying early signs of challenges
70%
of youth involved in California’s juvenile justice system have unmet behavioral health needs and youth of color are over-represented

75% of chronic mental illness begins by age 24. We know that a child’s healthy development forms the foundation for adult health and the intergenerational health of families. Yet most children in California do not receive the support they need for healthy development despite the fact that 97% have health insurance and 50% of all California children are covered by Medi-Cal.

Better Approach 2

The Children’s Trust seeks to reimagine the way California supports children’s healthy development and social and emotional well-being. It’s not about providing more of the same. It’s about transforming services across systems, and scaling them to meet the needs of our communities. Our briefs give you the facts and propose a path for change: Reimagining Child Well Being and Financing New Approaches to Achieve Child Well Being.

The Trust is issuing a series of white papers, co-authored with leading experts in the field, that detail strategies to provide comprehensive support to children at each major stage of development.

Early Childhood

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

School Age

The Healing Centered Community School, and How to Pay For It (Coming April 2020)

Older Youth

(Coming Summer 2020)

Reimagining Behavioral Health for California's Children and Their Families

Changing our systems to improve child well-being is our collective responsibility

Our solution focuses on bringing people and child-oriented systems together, throughout California, to redesign service delivery, promote health policies that consider the whole child and family, and create effective funding mechanisms that will transform our failing systems. We have an obligation and an unprecedented opportunity to create an integrated system that promotes healthy development, healing, and resilience for our children, youth and families.

A Once-In-A-Generation Reform Opportunity

California has a generational opportunity to reform our state’s troubled Medicaid program. The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) has presented a reform agenda through the Medi-Cal Healthier California for All proposal (formerly CalAIM).

In November 2019 we released our analysis of the Medi-Cal Healthier California for All proposal.

With our reform partners, we have been carefully monitoring, participating and submitting written feedback on the proposal to DHCS. The following are our response letter to date.

Feedback & Recommendations from the California Children’s Trust

December 16, 2019

California Children’s Trust & Children’s Health Collaborative

December 16, 2019

California Children’s Trust & Educators Collaborative

December 16, 2019

Payment Reform with California Alliance & ACHSA

December 23, 2019

Medical Necessity with California Alliance

January 3, 2020

Our Key Principles

Our Key Principles

The California Children’s Trust asks all of its Coalition Partners to affirm five Key Principles

Early intervention is critical to healthy development.

California needs to widen access to behavioral health supports.

Racism and poverty contribute to health inequities across California.

Collaborative and accountable systems change is the way forward.

The time for change is now.

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