California Children's Services (CCS)

What is California Children's Services?

CCS is a program that helps children with certain diseases, physical limitations, or chronic health problems.

Can our child get CCS?

If you or your child’s doctor think that your child has a medical problem that CCS covers, CCS can pay for an exam to see if CCS can cover your child’s care. If CCS covers your child’s problem, CCS pays for, or provides services like:

Doctor visits
Hospital stays
Surgery
Physical and occupational therapy
Lab tests and X-rays
Orthopedic appliances and medical equipment.

What else can CCS do for our child?

CCS can manage your child's medical care. This means CCS can get the special doctors and care your child needs. Sometimes CCS refers you to other agencies, like public health nursing and regional centers so you can get the services your child needs. CCS also had a Medical Therapy Program (MTP). MTP's are in public schools and give physical and occupational therapy to eligible children.

Are there other requirements?

To get CCS, your child must:

Be under 21 years old; and
Have or may have a medical problem that CCS covers; and
Be a resident of California; and
Have a family income under $40,000 (your adjusted gross income on the state tax form).

What if my family's income is more than $40,000?

You can still get CCS if:

You have Medi-Cal (full scope, no cost);
You have Healthy Families insurance;
Your out-of-pocket medical expenses for your child’s care is more than 20% of your family income;
You only want MTP services;
You need to see a doctor to see if your child is eligible for CCS; or
You adopted your child with a known medical problem that made them eligible for CCS.

What medical problems does CCS cover?

CCS doesn’t cover all problems. CCS covers most problems that are physically disabling or that need to be treated with medicines, surgery, or rehabilitation. There are other factors, too.

CCS covers children with problems like:

congenital heart disease
cancers, tumors
hemophilia, sickle cell anemia
thyroid problems, diabetes
serious chronic kidney problems
liver or intestine diseases
cleft lip/palate, spina bifida
hearing loss, cataracts
cerebral palsy, uncontrolled seizures
rheumatoid arthritis, muscular dystrophy
AIDS
severe head, brain, or spinal cord injuries, severe burns
problems caused by premature birth
severely crooked teeth
broken bones

Can we use any doctor or provider we want?

No. CCS must approve the provider, services, and equipment first.

If you are unsure if the provider you would like to see is CCS paneled (approved), you can check here: https://cmsprovider.cahwnet.gov/prv/ppn.pdf

How do we apply?

Fill out a CCS application and return it to your county CCS office. You can get an application from your county CCS office or download from: https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/formsandpubs/forms/Documents/DHCS-4480.pdf.

Fill out your application carefully so CCS will have all the information they need to see if you qualify.