County Public
Health Contacts
Follow IDPH on Twitter

EPSDT Providers

Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment (EPSDT) Care for Kids program

EPSDT Care for Kids is Iowa's federally mandated Medicaid program for children. The EPSDT Care for Kids program provides routine physicals or well-child check-ups for Medicaid eliglible children at certain specified ages. It is considered preventive care.

Who is eligible?

Children birth through age 20 years of age who have an active Iowa Medicaid card.

What services are provided?

Initial and periodic health check-ups including, but not limited to, the following:

  • medical history
  • physical examination
  • dental screening
  • hearing and vision screening
  • immunizations
  • laboratory tests, including blood lead testing
  • growth and developmental assessment
  • referral for further diagnostic and treatment services, if needed

What resources are available to assist health care providers in implementing the EPSDT Care for Kids program?


Iowa EPSDT Coordinator Contacts

2012 Childhood Immunization Schedules:

The 2012 recommended immunization schedules for persons aged 0 - 18 years and the catch-up immunization schedule have been approved by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). The 2012 recommendations are divided into separate schedules, one for children ages 0 through 6 years and one for children ages 7 through 18 years. A catch-up schedule is also included.

Changes in the schedules for 2012 include the following:

  • An update on the age 0 through 6 year schedule was made to extend the Quadrivalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV4) purple bar to reflect licensure of MCV4-D (Menactra) use in children as young as age 9 months.
  • An update on the age 0 through 6 year schedule was made to change wording in the hepatitis A (HepA) vaccine yellow bar; Wording now states, "Dose 1." A new yellow and purple bar has been added to reflect HepA vaccine recommendations for children aged 2 years and older.
  • Guidance is provided for administration of hepatitis B (HepB) vaccine in infants with birthweights <2,000 grams and ?2,000 grams. Clarification is provided for doses after administration of the birth dose of HepB vaccine.
  • Rotavirus (RV) vaccine footnotes have been condensed.
  • Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) conjugate vaccine footnotes have been condensed, and use of Hiberix for the booster (final) dose has been clarified. Guidance for use of Hib vaccine in persons aged 5 years and older in the catch-up schedule has been updated.
  • Pneumococcal vaccine footnotes have been condensed.
  • Guidance is provided for use of measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine in infants aged 6 through 11 months. Footnotes in the catch-up schedule have been condensed.
  • HepA vaccine footnotes have been updated to clarify that the second dose of HepA vaccine should be administered 6-18 months after dose 1.
  • MCV4 footnotes have been updated to reflect recent recommendations published in MMWR.
  • Influenza vaccine footnotes have been updated to provide guidance on live, attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) contraindications.
  • Influenza vaccine footnotes also have been updated to clarify dosing for children aged 6 months through 8 years for the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons.
  • The age 7 through 18 year schedule has been updated to include number of doses for each vaccine. Information regarding the recommended age (16 years) for the booster dose of MCV4 has been added.
  • Tdap vaccine recommendations for children aged 7 through 10 years have been updated.
  • Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine footnotes have been updated to include routine recommendations for vaccination of males.
  • Varicella (VAR) vaccine footnotes have been condensed.
  • Inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) footnotes have been updated to include upper age limit for routine vaccination. IPV footnotes in the catch-up schedule have been condensed, and relevant wording was added.
  • In the catch-up immunization schedule, HepA vaccine and HepB vaccine footnotes have been removed. Relevant wording has been added.
  • MCV4 vaccine has been added to the catch up schedule along with corresponding footnotes.

The National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act requires that health-care providers provide parents or patients with copies of Vaccine Information Statements (VIS) before administering each dose of the vaccines listed in the schedules. Additional information is available from state health departments and from CDC at www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/default.htm.

CAReS User Manual

The Child and Adolescent Reporting System (CAReS) is used by Title V Child Health agencies to document a client's demographic information, needs, and services provided. The CAReS User Manual  Adobe Acrobat Logo has been developed as a step-by-step guide for data entry.

CMS EPSDT Information:

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) EPSDT Web page  This item links to an outside page provides information on EPSDT benefits and state agency responsibilities and required activities.

CMS 416 Participation Rate Data

The Iowa Medicaid Enterprise reports EPSDT screening data to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) each Federal Fiscal Year (October 1 - September 30). The annual CMS 416 Report provides basic information on children's participation in the Medicaid program based upon this data. The information is used to assess the effectiveness of state EPSDT programs in terms of the number of Medicaid enrolled children who are provided screening services and referred for treatment. States are required to maintain a minimum Participation Rate of 80%. Participation Rates indicate the extent to which the number of Medicaid eligible members who should be screened during the year receive at least one initial or periodic screening service. The unit of measure is the number of Medicaid enrolled children receiving at least one initial or periodic screening service divided by the unduplicated count of Medicaid enrolled children who should receive at least one initial or periodic screening service in the year. The initial and periodic screening services are based on the Iowa Recommendations for Scheduling Care for Kids Screenings.

DHS Policy Manual for Screening Centers

The Iowa Medicaid Provider Manual for Screening Centers  Adobe Acrobat Logo  This item links to an outside page contains basic information concerning Iowa's Medical Assistance Program (Medicaid). All providers of medical and health services participating as a Medicaid Screening Center use this manual. It includes information on policies, procedures, and billing for this Medicaid program.

EPSDT Care for Kids Informing and Care Coordination Handbook

The EPSDT Care for Kids Informing and Care Coordination Handbook  Adobe Acrobat Logo assists Title V Child Health agencies and their subcontractors in implementing EPSDT Care for Kids informing and care coordination services.

EPSDT Care for Kids Newsletter

The EPSDT Care for Kids Newsletter  This item links to an outside page informs Iowa health care professionals about Iowa's EPSDT Care for Kids program. It is published three times a year and provides information about new developments in the field of children's health care. Archived newsletters dating back to 1997 are found on-line and may be searched by topic and date.

EPSDT Care for Kids Provider Resource Web Page

This EPSDT Care for Kids Provider Resource Web page  This item links to an outside page provides information for Iowa's EPSDT Care for Kids professional providers. It contains useful tools, resources, and links for EPSDT Care for Kids services with special emphasis on promoting healthy physical, mental, social, and emotional development of children birth through age three.

EPSDT Knowledge Path - Maternal and Child Health Library

The Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Library, located at the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health at Georgetown University, is a virtual guide to MCH information. It offers a combination of MCH information compiled by library staff and pathways to the best MCH information available from other websites, organizations, and libraries. Knowledge paths on MCH related topics contain selections of recent, high quality resources and tools for staying abreast of new developments. Components of a knowledge path include links to websites, electronic publications, databases, discussion groups, and citations from journal articles and other print resources.

The EPSDT Knowledge Path includes guidelines for the frequency, timing, and content of health-promotion and disease-prevention services for infants, children, and adolescents. Separate sections present resources for professionals (health professionals, program administrators, policymakers, and researchers) and for families. A special topics area lists resources about oral health services as part of the EPSDT benefit. View the EPSDT Knowledge Path online at http://www.mchlibrary.info/KnowledgePaths/kp_EPSDT.html  This item links to an outside page.

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) EPSDT Information:

The HRSA EPSDT Web site  This item links to an outside page provides information about how EPSDT works with public health, families, managed care organizations, pediatricians, and other health providers.

Iowa Child Health and Development Record forms (CHDR)

The Iowa Child Health and Development Record  This item links to an outside page forms are tools that serve as a guide for well child screening, anticipatory guidance, and documentation of the child's care plan. These forms are age-specific for young children from birth through age 5, based on the Iowa Recommendations for Scheduling Care for Kids Screenings.

Iowa Medicaid Enterprise (IME) Provider Services

The Iowa Medicaid Enterprise Provider Services  This item links to an outside page provides information for providers about the Medicaid program.

Periodicity Schedule

The Iowa Recommendations for Scheduling Care for Kids Screenings is commonly called the Periodicity Schedule. This document provides a one-page summary of the ages at which recommended health screening services are to be provided as a child grows.

For more information: 1-800-383-3826

You may also use the "Contact Us" link to submit questions online.