Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

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South Dakota program

Help finding care (Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs)

The state’s children’s health team helps families find and coordinate care for chronic conditions.

What it is

The state’s children’s health team helps families find and coordinate care for chronic conditions.

Finding the right service can take several calls. The Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs team is a place to ask about South Dakota’s services. Its current work includes access, referrals and information.

Eligibility rules
  • The team helps with information, referrals and finding services. Ask the contact whether any direct payment help (the older Health KiCC program) is still open to a newly diagnosed child.
What you get
  • Help finding services and coordinating care for a child with ongoing health needs.
What the help includes
  • The current CYSHCN service focuses on access, information and referrals.
If you decide to apply
  1. If you want help finding services, contact Kristy Jackson at 605-910-7091 or kristy.jackson@state.sd.us.
  2. Describe the care your child needs and ask which services are open to a newly diagnosed child.

South Dakota Department of Health CYSHCN: Kristy Jackson, 605-910-7091, kristy.jackson@state.sd.us · Official page ↗

After you ask
  • The Department of Health contact can explain which services fit your child’s situation.
Good to know

The older Health KiCC payment program is phasing out while continuing for people already enrolled. A referral service is not a promise to pay treatment bills.

Other details
  • CYSHCN is South Dakota’s Title V children’s health program. Older Health KiCC rules may not describe services open to new families.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Could the state’s children’s health team help us find care or services? What would it add, what are its limits, and could you help us contact them if useful?”

Why I’m asking: I want to know whether someone familiar with the state’s services can help us find the right support.

More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.

You

Make one phone call and ask a direct question about what is paid for.

Your social worker

The oncology social worker may already know the answer for your region.

The care team

Records and letters when the application asks for them.

Who decides
South Dakota Department of Health
Ask the agency
“My child has just been diagnosed with leukaemia. What does the children with special health care needs programme cover today, and can a newly diagnosed child enrol?”

How to apply

First step: Call 605-910-7091 and ask what is covered today.

  1. Call 605-910-7091 and ask what the programme can pay for today and who is eligible.
  2. Ask specifically whether the older Health KiCC programme is open to a newly diagnosed child.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Call Kristy Jackson on 605-910-7091 or email kristy.jackson@state.sd.us.

What to gather

  • Your child's diagnosis and the treating hospital

How long: No published referral-to-service time.

What a yes looks like

A named contact and a list of services in your part of the state.

What a no looks like, and the next move

Ask what the programme does still pay for, and put the answer in writing for the next family.

Watch out

  • The older programme that paid for treatment is described as phasing out.
  • No current income line or diagnosis list was published, so do not rule yourself in or out from an old document.

Dates that change this

2026-09-11: South Dakota's current children with special health care needs page is about access, referral and information. No current diagnosis list, income line, cost sharing or payment benefit for a newly diagnosed child was published. The older payment programme, Health KiCC, is described as phasing out while continuing for people already enrolled. Ring and ask rather than assuming either way. (not yet confirmed against the final rule)

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.

What it is worth

A named contact for help finding and coordinating care. No current payment benefit was published.

Covers: Help finding and coordinating care for a child with a chronic condition · Genetic outreach services in Aberdeen, Pierre and Rapid City

What it costs the family: Not published.

The eligibility facts, as published

Medical
children with chronic conditions; no current diagnosis list naming leukaemia was published
Income
no current income line was published

Decisions this site cannot make: Department of Health eligibility decision, if a benefit is open at all

Expect friction on: The programme that used to pay for treatment is being phased out and only old enrollees are described; there is no published route in for a newly diagnosed child

The trap: The older programme that did pay, Health KiCC, is described in an out-of-date report as continuing for the people already enrolled while being phased out. Do not treat that description as a current open door or reuse its old income limit.

Where I read this

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