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Child Health

Bright Futures

AAP/Bright Futures Periodicity Schedule

The Bright Futures/American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Recommendations for Preventive Pediatric Health Care, also known as the “Periodicity Schedule,” is a schedule of screenings and assessments recommended at each well-child visit from infancy through adolescence.  The AAP Coding for Pediatric Preventive Care 2025 provides information on reporting preventive services; please refer to this AAP publication regarding terms of use.

Georgia Medicaid follows this schedule with the exception of the prenatal visit and the over 21 years of age visit as listed within the schedule.   Full details can be found within the Part II Policies and Procedures for Early & Periodic Screening, Diagnostic & Treatment (EPSDT) Health Check Program on GAMMIS under the tab Provider/Provider Manuals.

Developmental Surveillance and Screening

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends developmental surveillance at every well-child visit and developmental screening using a standardized developmental screening tool at the 9, 18, and 30-month well child visits.  Additionally, developmental screening may be performed, as needed, for members ages 3 years through 6 years of age or if a parent/caregiver expresses concern about their child’s development.  Use a standardized developmental screening tool with a specificity and sensitivity of 70% – 80% meets this recomendation.  

Promoting Optimal Development: Identifying Infants and Young Children With Developmental Disorders Through Developmental Surveillance and Screening policy statement and related supplemental report offers guidance for pediatricians and others providing pediatric primary care on this service.

Autism Spectrum Disorders

In addition to developmental screening, pediatricians are encouraged to screen children for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) at the 18 and 24-month well child visits. Siblings of children with ASD should also be screened with a standardized tool that evaluates social and communication skills.

The Modified Checklist for Infants and Toddlers-Revised with Follow-up (M-CHAT-R/F) –  is a screening tool to detect the possibility of autism spectrum disorders. This test is for children age 16 – 30 months of age and consists of 20 yes/no items; guidance on a follow-up interview to confirm the parent/caregiver’s responses to the questions is also included.

The AAP Autism Tool Kit – is a clinical resource toolkit includes screening tools and care management tools to assist in the recognition, evaluation, and ongoing management of autism spectrum disorders.

Children 1st

Pediatrician’s Guide to Public Health Programs for Children

This brief guide will help you navigate through a variety of programs offered through the Georgia Department of Public Health that may benefit your patients.  If you have questions about this guide, please contact Fozia Khan Eskew, at the Chapter offfice at feskew@gaaap.org.  Click on the image to view the guide with embedded links.

DPH Women and Children Service Locator – this information is intended as a resource for families to locate public health programs and services such as Children’s Medical Services (CMS), Babies Can’t Wait (BCW) and/or 1st Care serving the health needs of women and children in their area. 

Maternal and Child Health Conditions Database – This database allows you to search if an ICD 10 condition may permit services by a public health program and service such as Children’s Medical Services (CMS), Babies Can’t Wait (BCW) and/or 1st Care.  

Children 1st  is the entry point into Georgia’s Public Health system for children birth to five.  The core functions of Children 1st include early identification of all children with conditions that place them at risk for poor health and/or developmental outcomes; especially through screening of Georgia’s Electronic Birth Certificates.  Additionally, Children 1st supports developmental screening activities throughout Georgia to identify children in need.

Assessment of family strengths and needs as well as linkages to community based public and private programs and services is provided.  Click here for a listing of Children 1st Coordinators.  Click here to obtain a copy of the Children 1st Screening and Referral form.  Click here to view Instructions to complete the form

Georgia Newborn Screening Program

New!  The Georgia Department of Public Health has released the Newborn Screening Program Reference Guide of Genetic Disorders.  The guide provides a primary indicator, symptoms, and treatment of various newborn dried blood spot screening conditions.  

    Repeat Screenings

    To obtain new filter paper for repeat newborn metabolic and hemoglobinopathy screenings, please complete the Outfit Order Form and select items 3491 Metabolic Disease and and 3603 Mailing Envelope to obtain these new supplies.

    For full details visit the Georgia Department of Public Health Newborn Screening for Metabolic and Sickle Cell Disorders website. 

     

    Ga Newborn Dried Blood Spot (DBS) Screening Results – Your practice can obtain copies of a newborn’s screening results through either the official webportal of the Georgia Department of Public Health State laboratory, eReports or the State Electronic Notifiable Disease Surveillance System (SENDSS). Registration is required for both systems.

    eReports – You must have established a User Name and Password using your physician licensure number as well as the parent or caregiver’s “blue copy” of the filter paper cover sheet containing the ten-digit number to obtain results.   Click here for the registration form for the eReports web portal.

      SENDSS – You must have access to this web based database to access results.  This is the unofficial posting of results for newborn screening.  You will need the following to obtain the results:

      • Date of birth of number and mother’s first and last name at the time the first specimen was collected
      • This is information may be in the newborn’s discharge summary from the birthing hospital. The birthing hospital may have, but is not required to, place the ten-digit form number in the mother’s EHR.

      To complete the process for SENDSS, click here for instructions. To view FAQs regarding SENDSS, please click here.

      Abnormal DBS Results & Follow-up  – Review the follow-up recommendations listed within the results report. For more information:

      Hemoglobinopathies

      Outside Metro Atlanta

      • Augusta University (AU) Hemoglobin Follow-Up (706) 721-6251
      • Augusta University (AU) Hemoglobin Follow-Up MD On-Call (706) 721-5600

      Inside Metro Atlanta

      • CHOA Hemoglobin Follow-Up (404) 785-1087
      • CHOA Hemoglobin Follow-Up MD On-Call (470) 565-3425

      Carrier Status – Sickle Cell Foundation of Georgia, Inc – The Sickle Cell Foundation of Georgia, Inc (SFGa) is responsible for follow-up of abnormal hemoglobin results that suggest carrier status. Foundation staff contacts families and offers family testing and counseling.

      SCFGa Hemoglobin Traits/Carriers Follow-Up (404) 755-1541 or (800) 326-5287

      Metabolic and Endocrine Follow-up –  Emory University Division of Medical Genetics. Program staff reports abnormal results to the listed health care provider, aids in locating the newborn with an abnormal screen, and offers follow-up recommendations.  For information contact the Emory Medical Genetics, call (404) 778-8560.

      Early Hearing Detection & Intervention  (EDHI)

      The Early, Detection, Hearing & Intervention (EDHI) Program seeks to screening all Georgia newborns for suspected or confirmed hearing impairment.  This newborn hearing screening brochure, Have You Heard, outlines this program; click here for the English version and here for the Spanish version. Newborn Hearing Screening & the Medical Home: The 1-3-6 Guidance For Medical Home Providers offers tips on managing early hearing diagnosis & treatment in the pediatric office.

      Additional resources from public health on the Georgia EDHI can be found here. Electronic reporting for hearing screening and diagnostic results is maintained through the Georgia DPH State Electronic Notifiable Disease Surveillance System (SendSS).

          Notifiable Disease:  Suspected and confirmed cases of hearing impairment in children younger than age five is a notifiable disease. Suspected cases of hearing loss must be reported to Children 1st via the Children 1st Screening and Referral form within 7 days. The Surveillance of Hearing Impairment in Infants and Young Children is used to report confirmed hearing loss in children under the age of five.

          Georgia Mobile Audiology:  This mobile service offers diagnostic services to families; to find a location near you, click here.

          Healthcare Transitions from Pediatric to Adult Oriented Care

          Supporting youth and young adults from pediatric to adult oriented care for children with and without special healthcare needs is essential.   Pediatric practices are encouraged to consider the 6 Core Elements in healthcare transitions.  The National Alliance to Advance Adolescent Health partnered with various group and identified these elements within their initiaitve, Got Transition:  1) a healthcare transition policy that is family informed and made available to patients & families; 2) includes tracking/monitoring of what youth or young adult may be approaching that transition period as well as where they are in understanding their individual healthcare needs; 3) assessing youth and parent/caregiver readiness for healthcare transitions; 4) planning with youth and families by creating a medical summary; 5) identification of available physicians who can accept your patient with or without special healthcare needs to achieve healthcare transfer; and finally 6) healthcare transition completion to adult oriented care where the peditric medical home can engage with the young adults new adult medical home as need. Materials to support encorporating these elements in your practice can be found here.

              Youth Health Care Transitions:  Special Edition of The Ga Pediatrician – This special edition of The Georgia Pediatrician was created through a collaboration with the Child Health Section of the Georgia Department of Public Health with the support of primary care pediatricians, a young adult, and an adult specialty physician. Click here to view this special edition.

              Transition Quick Guide:  This checklist provides information and resources about health insurance coverage, self-care, health care transition, decision-making, and career planning and management.

              Georgia Public Health Resources:  The following are guides to support youth, families, and the pediatric practice in supporting successful healthcare transitions:

              Additional Public Health Resources & Information

              Ga Evidence Based Home Visiting (EBHV) – Specific goals of the Georgia Department of Public Health Home Visiting Programs include (1) increase healthy pregnancies; (2) improve parenting confidence and competence; (3) improve child health, development and readiness; and (4) increase family connectedness to community and social support. Georgia Home Visiting Programs include:

              Online Analytical Statistical Information System (OASIS) – is the standardized health data repository and provides aggregate Georgia birth and death data by counties and by year.

              Birth Defects Reporting – Click here to learn mroe about Georgia’s Birth Defect Reporting system. Any questions pertaining to notifiable defects or methods of reporting should be referred to Registry staff at birthdefects@dph.ga.gov. 

              Georgia Healthy Homes and Lead Poisoning Prevention (GHHLPPP) – Click here for information on Georgia’s surveillance system for blood lead levels and environmental tests results and selected healthy homes variables.

              Georgia Tobacco Quit Line Available Teens – a free resource available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (including holidays) that helps tobacco users ages 13 and older; call 1-877-270-STOP. Spanish speakers are encouraged to dial: 1-877-2NO-FUME. TTY: 1-877-777-6534 for the hearing impaired. Educational materials are available to post in your office or to give to your patients; click here to review available material.

              Safe Infant Sleep

              Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID) is a sudden and unexpected death of a baby aged younger than 1 year.  As of 2022, Georgia averaged 4 infant deaths/week due to sleep-related causes.  Details on the Georgia Safe to Sleep Campaign can be found here. For more information about trends and SUID by race and ethnicity visit this CDC website on Data and Statistics.

              Georgia Medicaid and Oral Health

              Primary Care Dentist (PCD) – The Georgia Department of Community Health’s Early, Periodic Screening, Diagnosis & Treatment (EPSDT) – Health Check Program requires that a dental provider be identified for those enrolled in Medicaid.  This information is on the child’s Medicaid ID card.  All children enrolled in Medicaid are to be linked to this dental provider by 12 months of age. 

              Oral Heatlh Risk Assessments – EPSDT also requires oral health risk assessment to be performed 6 and 9-month visits. Beginning at the 9-month visit, encourage the family to identify a dental home for their child if they have not already done so. If the family has not yet accessed a dental home depsite referral, risk assessments at the 12, 18, 24, and 30 month visits should continue and be documented. Click here for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Oral Health Risk Assessment tool.

              Fluoride Varnish – EPSDT permits that once teeth are present, the application of fluoride varnish may be applied every 3-6 months in the primary care or dental office for children between the ages of 6 months and 5 years. The code for physicians to report for this service is 99188.

              Georgia Minor’s Right Cards

              The Georgia Minor’s Access to Confidential Reproductive Healthcare provides a summary of Georgia laws surrounding minors’ access to confidential care.

              Please contact the Chapter’s Director of Child Health, Fozia Khan Eskew via email at feskew@gaaap.org if you have any questions regarding the information on this webpage.