Accelerating Kids' Access to Care Act

This bipartisan legislation was signed into law on February 3, 2026! This moment is a result of our community's collective, relentless advocacy, and it means that more children will have a chance to beat cancer and live long, healthy lives.

Children with complex medical needs such as cancer are routinely required to travel out of state to receive care or participate in a clinical trial. More than half of children in the United States rely on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) as their central sources of health care coverage, but Medicaid and CHIP coverage is limited to providers in a child’s home state. If a child’s medical condition requires them to obtain care from an out-of-state provider or care team, the provider must go through the screening and enrollment process in the child's home state Medicaid program, which can cause burdensome delays in providing time-sensitive care.

The Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act would address these delays by creating an alternative opt-in pathway for providers in good standing to enroll in multiple state Medicaid programs, allowing them to provide essential, time-sensitive care to children who need it.

The legislation pertains only to provider screening and enrollment and does not change the authority states have to authorize out-of-state care or negotiate payment with providers who accept such cases. AKACA would reduce delays in providing time-sensitive care to the children most in need, reduce administrative burdens and costs, and reduce the risk of care disruption and subsequent negative outcomes.

Learn more about the bill: