A piece of children’s healthcare legislation from Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is now law after President Trump signed a Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 funding package. 

Grassley’s bipartisan Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act, which was included in the package, improves health care access for children with complex medical conditions by simplifying out-of-state Medicaid screening and enrollment processes for pediatric care providers, while retaining key safeguards to preserve the integrity of the program.  

Grassley explains how this legislation will help benefit families, “We’re talking about kids that have multiple health problems. Parents that have enough problems, worrying about the health of their kids, and they want to get the best treatment that they can, they shouldn’t have to go through a lot of red tape to get the job done.” 

Children with complex medical conditions cannot always secure specialized care in their home states. When this happens, parents must work with their in-state providers and Medicaid officials to identify out-of-state providers who do offer that care. The process has regulatory hurdles that often delay, or even prohibit, children from receiving critical medical treatments. 

The Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act helps alleviate these burdens for families, as well as providers. The University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital, along with 212 other organizations across the country were supportive of the passage of this bill, as they treat many out of state patients. The bill was signed into law in early February.