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News Releases
Finding Benefits
for Children with Juvenile Arthritis
Columbia, Mo. (August 1, 2007) - Every parent wants a healthy life for their child. But, that's not always the case. Hearing the word "arthritis" in a diagnosis for your child can be unexpected and confusing.
Arthritis is an inflammation of the joints that is characterized by swelling, heat, and pain. Nearly 285,000 children in the United States have some sort of arthritis. In fact, juvenile arthritis is among the most common chronic childhood disorders.
"Children with juvenile arthritis need a constellation of services that often include significant health care and other interventions from a variety of sources," says Michael Jonathan Grinfeld, J.D., associate professor at the Missouri School of Journalism, and principal investigator for the Missouri Arthritis Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (MARRTC). "That means kids will not only need access to physicians and surgeons, medications, hospitals, and physical and mental health therapists but also to resources that will help them function in school and other activities that are important to child development. That's why www.JAhelp.org. was created, to give parents and caregivers information about all the ways to organize a treatment regimen."
Arthritis can become very expensive - frequent visits to a specialist, medications, physical therapy - for a family. Knowing what resources are available for your child could mean a better start for them. Here is some information about governmental programs that can offer benefits for children and teenagers with juvenile arthritis (and related conditions).
- Medicaid is a national program that provides health care services to low-income families and individuals. The federal government and each state help to pay for the medical services that are provided. Each state administers its own program, sets its own eligibility requirements, and decides what specific services will be covered.
- S-CHIP or State-Children's Health Insurance Program provides health insurance for children of families whose income is too high to qualify for Medicaid but too low to afford private health insurance. Each state sets its own rules, and decides what services are offered. Some states give their S-CHIP programs special names. For example, Georgia calls its program PeachCare, while New Mexico named it NewMexiKids.
- High risk insurance pools are programs created by many states to provide health insurance for people who cannot get individual health insurance coverage at a reasonable price because of their medical condition. They may be administrated through existing health insurance companies such as Blue Cross/Blue Shield. Not every state has a high risk insurance pool.
- Title V or the Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN) programs are state programs that receive federal money to assist children (under age 18) and young adults with special health care needs. Children with juvenile arthritis and related conditions may be eligible for help under these programs. Each state uses CSHCN funds differently, so the services and resources available will be different depending on where you live.
For help and a better understanding of these and other state and federal programs, visit www.JAhelp.org. Using the programs to get better knowledge of resources available to your family could make a tremendous difference in the life your child.
The Missouri Arthritis Research Rehabilitation and Training Center (MARRTC) was established in 1971 at the University of Missouri-Columbia Arthritis Center. MARRTC is funded by the U.S. Department of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (H133B031120) and is the only federally funded arthritis rehabilitation research and training center in the country.
As part of the MU Health Communication Research Center (HCRC), MARRTC's mission is to become a national leader in the areas of disability management and communication, improve the quality of life and promote independent living among people who have arthritis and arthritic conditions. MARRTC's core message is "Disability is everyone's issue."
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