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Center for Children and Youth with Special Healthcare Needs

When your child has complex healthcare needs, you want an experienced, knowledgeable team you can count on. We provide complete, coordinated, family-centered care in a single place — we offer convenience and peace of mind.

We specialize in caring for children who need extra help — whether they need multiple specialists, medical equipment or home care, or assistance with daily living. As a pediatric academic medical center, we work with thousands of kids who need advanced care. Our experts understand your needs and help make caring for your child a little easier. Together, we help your child live their best life at home, at school, and in the community.

Our Services

We offer complete care and coordination assistance for conditions that require complex, team-based care, including:

  • Autism spectrum disorder
  • Breathing or feeding problems
  • Conditions that require medical equipment such as oxygen, feeding pumps and tubes, ostomy supplies, and more
  • Conditions that required treatment in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), such as congenital heart disease or prematurity
  • Developmental disorders and intellectual or learning disabilities
  • Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder
  • Genetic disorders, including Down syndrome
  • Neuromuscular disorders, such as cerebral palsy and spina bifida

Our services are designed around the needs of kids and families, from birth up to age 21.

Insurance Accepted

Please note: our list is not meant to be all-inclusive and is subject to change. Please check with your health plan to verify coverage.

Commercial

Aetna

  • Aetna HMO
  • Aetna HMO (Open Access)
  • Aetna HMO / Health Network Only
  • Aetna QPOS
  • Aetna Savings Plus
  • Aetna Select
  • Aetna Signature
  • Aetna Value Performance Network
  • Aetna Voluntary Plans
  • Aetna Whole Health
  • Choice POS, Choice - POS (Aetna HealthFund), Choice POS II, Choice POS II (Aetna HealthFund)
  • Elect Choice EPO
  • Health Network Only & Health Network Option
  • International Medical
  • Managed Choice, Managed Choice - Open Access, Managed Choice POS
  • Mercy Preferred Choice POSII, Mercy Preferred Choice Select, Mercy Preferred Elect Choice EPO
  • Mercy Preferred Managed Choice & Mercy Preferred Open Choice (PPO)
  • Open Access - Elect Choice, Open Access EPO
  • Open Access POS, Open Access EPO Plus (Broad) & Open Access POS II (Broad)
  • Open Choice PPO & Open Choice PPO - Aetna HealthFund
  • Peak Preference Select HNOnly on the Altius Network
  • Preferred - Open Choice PPO, Preferred Choice POS II, Preferred Select
  • Preferred Elect Choice EPO, Preferred Managed Choice
  • Premier Care - Network & Premier Care Network Plus
  • We do not participate in the following Aetna plans:
    • PEBTF HMO

Cigna

  • Choice Fund OA Plus
  • Open Access Plus
  • OA Plus
  • Choice Fund OA Plus with Care Link PPO
  • Choice Fund PPO Network
  • HMO
  • POS
  • Great West

Geisinger

Highmark Blue Shield (Note: Standard Tier)

  • We do not participate in the following Highmark plans:
    • Community Blue Medicare HMO
    • My Direct Blue EPO
    • Blue High-Performance Network (HPN)
    • Choice Blue PPO

Independence Blue Cross

  • Keystone HMO Proactive (Tier 3)
  • Keystone HMO/POS/Direct POS
  • Personal Choice PPO
  • Personal Choice EPO
  • Personal Choice Tiered (Tier 2)
  • National BlueCard PPO
  • IBC HMO Commercial tier 3 Standard
  • IBC PPO Commercial
  • AmeriHealth PPO & HMO Commercial
  • AmeriHealth Comprehensive Major Medical

United Healthcare

  • Unitedhealthcare Navigate
  • All Savers
  • Unitedhealthcare Catalyst
  • Unitedhealthcare Choice and Choice Plus
  • Unitedhealthcare Choice Advance and Choice Plus Advance
  • Unitedhealthcare Options PPO plans
  • Unitedhealthcare Oxford - Choice or Core network only
  • Unitedhealthcare Tiered Benefit Plans
  • Unitedhealthcare MD-IPA Plan
  • UHC Compass Rose PPO Plan
  • We do not participate in the following United Healthcare plans:
    • Oxford (unless the member has Choice or Core)
    • Heritage (unless the member has Choice Plus)
    • Erikson Advantage
CHIP

ABH Kids

Geisinger

Highmark CHIP

HPP KidzPartners

Keystone First CHIP

UHC CHIP

UPMC CHIP

Marketplace/ACA Plans

Geisinger

PA Health and Wellness (Ambetter)

Medicaid

Geisinger

Highmark Wholecare (formerly Gateway Health Plan)

Health Partners

Horizon NJ Health

Keystone First 

PA Health & Wellness 

Point Comfort Underwriters

  • Unaccompanied Minors
  • Afghan Refugees

UHC Medicaid

UPMC for You

  • Health Choices
  • Community Health Choices

Wellpoint (formerly AmeriGroup)

Medicare Advantage

Plans Offering Drug Coverage

Aetna Medicare

  • Aetna PEBTF PPO
  • Choice HMO
  • Silver HMO & PPO
  • Gold PPO
  • Premier HMO
  • Standard HMO
  • Basic HMO
  • We do not participate in the following Aetna plans:
    • PEBTF HMO

Blue Cross Medicare

Geisinger

Health Partners

Independence Blue Cross

  • IBC HMO Medicare Basic/Select
  • IBC HMO Medicare
  • IBC PPO Medicare
  • Amerihealth HMO Medicare
  • Keystone 65
    • Basic Rx HMO
    • Preferred Rx HMO
    • Select Rx HMO
    • We do not participate in the following Keystone 65 plans:
      • Focus

Personal Choice 65 Rx PPO

PA Health & Wellness

  • HMO DSNP
  • HMO MAPD
  • PPO DSNP
  • PPO MAPD

United Healthcare

  • Unitedhealthcare Dual Complete
  • Unitedhealthcare Group Medicare Advantage Plan
  • Unitedhealthcare Assisted Living Plan (PPO)
  • Unitedhealthcare Nursing Home Plan

UPMC for Life

  • HMO
  • PPO

Plans without Drug Coverage

Keystone 65

  • Preferred Medical Only HMO
  • Select Medical Only HMO
  • We do not participate in the following Keystone 65 plans:
    • Focus

United Healthcare AARP Medicare Complete

Special Needs Plan

United Healthcare

  • AARP Medicare Complete
  • UHC Dual Complete
  • UHC Group Medicare Advantage Plans
  • UHC Assisted Living Plan (PPO)
  • UHC Nursing Home Plan

A Medical Home that Feels Like Home

Home is where you’re understood, cared for, and supported — and we are your medical home. We partner with families to coordinate all your child’s medical and nonmedical needs and help them live their best life. You get streamlined, comprehensive, family-centered medical care and access to all our resources and within the community.

Along with comprehensive healthcare, we also help families navigate all the complexities related to their child’s health and well-being — from coordinating with specialists to securing insurance coverage for equipment or home healthcare. Our team of pediatricians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses, psychologists, care coordinators, medical assistants, social workers, dietitians, and referral coordinators make our hospital the single place to manage all your child’s needs.

We work closely with doctors all pediatric medical specialties, including Child Life specialists. Through our community-based partnerships, we offer assistance with legal issues, health advocacy, special education services, medical daycare, home nursing, medical equipment, and more. Our staff and community partners are here to support you every step of the way.