Promoting the optimal health and wellbeing of children through health care transformation demands a focus on addressing adverse social conditions. Value-based care can incentivize practices to screen for SDoH. However, such detection must respect the importance of families’ autonomy and priorities. Furthermore, detection must lead to helpful and desirable referral and linkage to a robust safety net of community-based programs and services. Medicaid policy at the state level, with federal approval when required, can strengthen the capacity of the social safety net by reimbursing SDoH interventions, reinvesting savings to expand social services, and engaging cross-sector collaborations. Despite formidable challenges, Medicaid provides a unique opportunity to advance an integrated, holistic system that promotes equity for US children.
Citation: Garg, A., Homer, C. J., & Dworkin, P. H. (2019). Addressing Social Determinants of Health: Challenges and Opportunities in a Value-Based Model. Journal of Pediatrics, 143(4). https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2018-2355