Linking the Child Care and Health Care Systems: A Consideration of Options

Funded by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, this report examines strategies for linking the health and child care systems in an effort to improve poor children's health. Studies show that poor, African American and Latino children have less access to health care and worse health outcomes than middle-class or non-Hispanic white children. With this reality in mind, the authors present five key strategies, identifying for each: the resources necessary for implementation, the strategy's potential to improve children's health, and the primary strengths and disadvantages -- including each strategy's promise for reaching the most vulnerable children. Drawing on interviews with experts in policy, health and child care, the report provides funders and policymakers with a framework for thinking about future interventions.