The health of children in foster care

Using Medicaid claims data, we compare the health service use and the prevalence of reported conditions among three groups of Medicaid-eligible Illinois children: those receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) who do not enter foster care, those receiving AFDC who subsequently enter foster care, and children in foster care. We find that the two groups of children receiving AFDC differed in their health service use and reported conditions. Once in foster care, children used more health services than children receiving AFDC. Children in kinship foster care also had similar patterns of service use and reported conditions.