Foster Care Training
Centene Foster Care
We advance our mission of transforming the health of the communities we serve, one person at a time, by supporting the physical and mental needs of our foster care members and their caregivers through robust partnerships with families, providers, and community organizations across the nation.
Health Care Services for Children
As the leading Medicaid managed care organization, Centene serves nearly a quarter of a million children involved in the child welfare and foster care system, more than any healthcare company in the nation. We have been engaged in this work since 2008, when the State of Texas became the first to issue a sole statewide managed care contract for this vulnerable population.
We’re committed to providing the right care at the right time and place, so every stakeholder can focus on what matters most: helping young people thrive.
Children in foster care deserve consistent, compassionate care, no matter where life takes them. In this video, watch how our foster care programs help bring stability, coordination, and support to children and families when it matters most.
Foster Care: National Strength. Local Support.
We recognize that every child, family and community we serve is unique – that’s why our local offices deliver personalized support tailored to our members’ needs, powered by our national expertise. Centene manages foster care in 21 states, six of which – Texas, Florida, Illinois, Missouri, Washington, and Oklahoma – are sole statewide contracts.
Select a state below to learn more:
How Do Our Services Help Children in Foster Care?
Centene’s local health plans partner with states to deliver Medicaid benefits for children and youth temporarily or permanently removed from their homes. These benefits empower biological parents, foster and adoptive families, kinship caregivers, and child welfare professionals to better support the youth in their care.
Our integrated care model combines specialized care management and preventive services to ease the burden on caregivers, child welfare workers, and advocates across education, judicial, and social systems.
Better Member Experiences
Our experienced foster care team brings long-standing commitment, lived experience, and deep community connections, partnering closely with local organizations, non-profits, and other mission-aligned groups to better serve children and families.
Many members of our foster care team have served as foster care parents themselves or were involved with the child welfare system as a child, giving them a unique connection to the families we serve. This perspective strengthens our ability to deliver personalized, compassionate care and help families and stakeholders navigate a complex system.
With integrated and proactive service coordination, we surround families with team members who resolve issues quickly, support smooth transitions of care, and ensure that each member gets the assistance they need.
Centers of Excellence
Centene’s breadth of experience, expertise and service has led to the creation of our Foster Care Centers of Excellence (FCCOE) model. The FCCOEs are medical centers in select states that provide expert, trauma-informed care for children and their families, including high-quality primary care.
Children served by FCCOEs tend to have more complex healthcare needs yet our data consistently indicates the children served at FCCOEs are more likely to receive timely access to important services.
Compared to children served at other pediatric clinics, children seen at the FCCOE are more likely to:
Get their well-child visits on time
Receive timely follow-up after a visit to the emergency department
Complete immunizations on schedule
