Legislation Signed to Combine Two Waiver Programs for Children with Complex Health Needs

New waiver will expand access to services and improve coordination of care

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 1, 2025

Media Contact
Marc Williams
Department of Health Care Policy & Financing
720-626-0801 (Cell)

Denver, CO - Governor Jared Polis has signed HB25-1003 which merges the Children's Home and Community-Based Services (CHCBS) waiver with the Children with Life Limiting Illness (CLLI) waiver, and creates a new waiver called the Children with Complex Health Needs waiver (CwCHN). The creation of the Children with Complex Health Needs waiver program is intended to better support Colorado youth with complex needs and protect access to in-home services, including respite care and pain management. The new waiver will also streamline and simplify administration, improve coordination of care, and ensure consistent eligibility and benefits for families.

"This bill ensures our kids with the highest needs continue to have access to the services they require to live and thrive in the community while also streamlining our waiver programs," said Director Bonnie Silva, Office of Community Living at the Department of Health Care Policy & Financing. "We appreciate the sponsors' leadership in bringing this forward and the Governor signing it into law."

The CHCBS Waiver currently has two services: the Wellness Education Benefit and In-Home Support Services (IHSS) Health Maintenance Activities. In July of 2025, the IHSS Health Maintenance Activities service will transition to Community First Choice (CFC). This change will leave only one service on the CHCBS Waiver, jeopardizing the state's federal authority to operate this waiver. Without federal authority to operate the waiver, CHCBS Waiver members may have been at risk of losing access to their waiver services and all other Health First Colorado benefits. While the bill is largely technical in nature, it ensures more than 2500 children currently on the CHCBS waiver will continue to have access to these critical services.

The new waiver goes into effect on July 1, 2025.

About the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy & Financing: The Department administers Health First Colorado (Colorado's Medicaid program), Child Health Plan Plus, and other programs for Coloradans who qualify. These health care programs now cover about one in four Coloradans. For more information about the Department, please visit hcpf.colorado.gov.