New CDC Studies About ADHD

Thursday, March 7, 2019 CDC Supports Children’s Development CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) is committed to helping children who have mental, behavioral, and developmental disorders. Through research and resources, NCBDDD helps families of these children, including children with ADHD, get the support they need. The following journal articles describe some recent research. Treatment Patterns and Costs Among Children Aged 2 to 17 Years with ADHD in New York State Medicaid in 2013, Journal of Attention Disorders This study identified children with ADHD enrolled in New York State (NYS) Medicaid and characterized ADHD-associated costs by treatment category. Although the ADHD cohort comprised only 5.4% of all children enrolled in NYS Medicaid, the study found that the total costs for the ADHD cohort accounted for 18.1% of the total costs for all children enrolled in Medicaid in 2013. The average cost per child for the ADHD cohort was approximately 3.2 times the average cost per child. Predictors of Receipt of School Services in a National Sample of Youth with ADHD, Journal of Attention Disorders This study describes the percentage and characteristics of children and adolescents in the United States with ADHD who had ever received or were currently receiving school-based treatment and services in 2014. The study found that at least 1 in 5 students with academic and/or social impairment from ADHD did not receive school services, a gap that was particularly evident for adolescents and youth from non-English-speaking and/or lower income families. Adherence to Recommended Care Guidelines in the Treatment of Preschool-Age Medicaid-Enrolled Children With a Diagnosis of ADHD, Psychiatric Services This study of healthcare claims data from seven southeastern states found that, for children with ADHD aged 2–5 years enrolled in Medicaid during 2005–2012, only about 1 in 6 children received American Academy of Pediatrics-recommended psychological services before medication was tried. The study found that the children who started with psychological services had a low likelihood of receiving medication before turning 6 years of age. Learn more about NCBDDD’s work— ADHD Child Development Children’s Mental Health National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities