Since 1995, the Health Care Reform Tracking Project has been tracking publicly financed managed care initiatives and their impact on children with mental health and substance abuse disorders and their families.

Some states and communities have made progress in providing behavioral health services to children and families touched by multiple service systems. This paper discusses three states’ promising approaches and special provisions in successful interagency initiatives that: (1) include child welfare systems in planning, funding, implementing, and evaluating the initiative; (2) meet the behavioral health needs of children and families in the system; (3) address child welfare system policies, laws, and mandates; and (4) share resources and/or funds between or across child serving systems.