School superintendents confirm Medicaid’s key role in schools, especially for children with disabilities. In a recent survey of 1,000 superintendents, 57 percent of districts reported that they’d have trouble meeting special education mandates without Medicaid funding. That’s just one of the ways that Medicaid helps schools and children. Without Medicaid funding to cover health care costs for Medicaid-eligible children, many schools would have to cut positions and programs, not just in health care but in general education as well.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that children with disabilities have access to public education in the least restrictive environment based on their individual needs, which for some children means getting the health care services, like speech and physical therapy, they need to get an effective education. Federal IDEA funding isn’t adequate to meet the special education needs of children with disabilities, but IDEA requires schools to prioritize special education over general education. Medicaid helps schools fulfill IDEA requirements by reimbursing schools for health care services they provide to Medicaid-eligible children. Moreover, Medicaid helps mitigate potential cuts to schools’ general education budgets to pay for their special education programs. Without Medicaid, the survey revealed, 29 percent of districts would have to cut general education positions and programs.