2023 District of Columbia Code › Title 4 - Public Care Systems › Chapter 6B - Healthy Early Childhood Development Programs › § 4–651.02. Healthy Steps Pediatric Primary Care Demonstration Program

§ 4–651.02. Healthy Steps Pediatric Primary Care Demonstration Program.
(a) DOH shall establish and administer a Healthy Steps Pediatric Primary Care Demonstration Program ("Program"), in accordance with this section, for the purpose of providing grants to primary care providers to administer:
(1) Healthy Steps; and
(2) Co-located lactation support services within the facilities of primary care providers selected to participate in the Program.
(b) Primary care providers located in Wards 5, 7, or 8 that serve a population of 50% Medicaid-eligible families shall be eligible to participate in the Program.
(c) An eligible primary care provider seeking to participate in the Program shall submit an application to DOH that includes a detailed description of the applicant's:
(1) Current pediatric population, including the following demographic characteristics of patients:
(A) Race;
(B) Ethnicity;
(C) Income level of parents;
(D) Primary language spoken; and
(E) Location by ward;
(2) Approach to health promotion, screening, prevention, and wellness for families with infants and toddlers;
(3) Engagement with other health professionals, including referral relationships with community-based social service providers and home visiting programs;
(4) Plan to integrate a child development specialist and a community health worker into the applicant's practice to engage with families with infants and toddlers;
(5) Plan to refer, coordinate care, and share data with home visiting programs and early learning providers, including Early Head Start, the Quality Improvement Network, and Strong Start;
(6) Plan to coordinate with family support services to address social determinants of health;
(7) Plan to engage an entity with expertise in implementing Healthy Steps for initial and ongoing training of pediatric primary care staff;
(8) Plan to provide services to promote healthy early childhood development and address parenting challenges;
(9) Plan to offer lactation support services, including consultative services and individual and group education classes;
(10) Staffing plan for lactation support services;
(11) Plan to coordinate care and referrals to co-located lactation support services;
(12) Current follow through rate of patient behavioral health referrals;
(13) Plan to improve the health literacy of patients;
(14) Plan to screen infants and toddlers for adverse childhood experiences and incorporate findings into the practice; and
(15) Other information as may be required by DOH.
(d) Subject to appropriations, DOH shall provide funding to participating primary care providers to:
(1) Implement Healthy Steps;
(2) Obtain and maintain Patient-Centered Medical Home National Committee for Quality Assurance recognition ;
(3) Obtain the services of community health workers to provide community navigation services;
(4) Screen patients and their families for adverse childhood experiences, developmental health, behavioral health, and social determinants of health needs that affect health and behavioral health outcomes, including poverty, food insecurity, housing instability, and domestic and community violence;
(5) Provide families with community navigation services to address the findings of the screening process conducted pursuant to paragraph (4) of this subsection;
(6) Support the data collection and reporting required pursuant to [§ 4-651.03]; and
(7) Support organizational training, evaluation, and delivery of services.
(e) DOH shall coordinate with other District agencies and primary care providers selected to participate in the Program to identify and provide effective incentives to families to encourage the use of lactation support services and community-based social services.
(f) DOH shall determine the feasibility of co-locating clinics participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, as established by section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, approved September 26, 1972 (86 Stat. 729; 42 U.S.C. § 1786), with primary care providers selected to participate in the Program.
(g) Subject to appropriations, local funding provided to the Program shall be:
(1) A grant of $300,000 each fiscal year for one primary care provider selected to participate in the Program and an evaluation by the external evaluation contractor selected pursuant to § 4-651.03; provided, that no more than 20% of the grant shall be allocated for an external evaluation conducted pursuant to § 4-651.03;
(2) In Fiscal Year 2020, an amount for at least one additional primary care clinic selected to participate in the Program; provided, that no more than 20% of the grant shall be allocated for an external evaluation conducted pursuant to § 4-651.03;
(3) Not Funded.
(4) Not Funded.
(5) Not Funded.
(Oct. 30, 2018, D.C. Law 22-179, § 102, 65 DCR 9569; July 12, 2022, D.C. Law 24-147, § 159, 69 DCR 003386.)
Applicability
Section 5142(c) of D.C. Law 23-16 amended section 301(a) of D.C. Law 23-16 removing the applicability provision impacting subsection (g)(2) of this section. Therefore, the addition of subsction (g)(2) of this section by section 102 of Law 22-179 has been implemented.
Applicability of D.C. Law 22-179: § 301 of D.C. Law 22-179 provided that the creation of subsection (g)(2), (3), (4), and (5) of this section by § 102 of D.C. Law 22-179 is subject to the inclusion of the law’s fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan. Therefore that amendment has not been implemented.