Rates of autism are higher among children with public insurance compared to those with private or no insurance coverage.
That’s according to a new report produced by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Approximately 5% of children between the ages of 3 and 17 with public insurance coverage have an autism diagnosis. Comparatively, 2% of children with private coverage only or no current coverage report having autism.
All children enrolled in Medicaid and in the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) receive screenings to identify health and developmental issues as soon as possible as part of the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment (EPSDT) benefit, according to the report.
Half of children with autism on public insurance were diagnosed with autism by the time they were 4 years old. Another 35% were diagnosed between the ages of 4 and 8, and 15% were diagnosed at age 8 or older.
A majority of the parents of children with autism on public insurance rated their child’s condition as moderate to severe, and 36% rated their child’s condition as mild. Additionally, 67% of parents of children with moderate to severe autism said their child received behavioral health treatment in the last 12 months. Comparatively, 44% of parents of children with mild autism said their child received services.
Children with public health insurance were also more likely to receive services than those with private coverage only. In fact, 59% of children on Medicaid or CHIP had services within the last 12 months, compared to 55% on private insurance.
The vast majority of children with autism and public insurance had at least one co-occurring condition. The top co-occurring conditions are learning disabilities, developmental delays, speech or language disorders, behavioral conduct problems, and attention deficit disorder.
While this new data demonstrates promising results for the care of children with autism on public health insurance, several providers have waved grievances about Medicaid rates in certain states.
For example, autism provider Hopebridge closed its Colorado locations, citing low Medicaid reimbursement rates and the rising operations costs.