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The Center for Mississippi Health Policy is providing supporting information to the Early Intervention Task Force established by Senate Bill 2167, 2023 Legislative Session, to study and report on the IDEA Part C Early Intervention System in Mississippi. The Mississippi Legislative Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review Committee (PEER) Staff is providing support for the Task Force. The following data is accumulated from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort, related to the Early Intervention program.
13% of Mississippi’s Population, Aged 0-3 Years, Are Potentially Eligible for Part C this is Higher than the National Goal of 2%.
Idea Part C Eligibility
Thirteen percent of children nine to twenty-four months have developmental delays that are likely to make them eligible for Part C Early Intervention. This percentage is much higher than the two percent figure used as the national goal (source: 2008 Publication).1 Analyses of a nationally representative sample of children born in the 2001 reveal that as early as nine months of age, statistically significant developmental disparities are identified for children based on four demographic characteristics: low income, racial/ethnic minority status, non-English home language, and low maternal education.
Impact of Poverty on Mississippi Population
Poverty was significantly related to prevalence. This Finding of higher rates of delays among 2-year-old children in poverty is consistent with reports that show differences on standardized development measures favoring children from higher income families becoming apparent at 24 months.
Significant Developmental Disparities are Identified in Children as Early as 9 Months.
Impact of Poverty
Based on Center analysis the following is potential eligible IDEA Part C Early Intervention population data accumulated from US Census Data (Below information is detailed by county in the attachments).
2023 Mississippi Population Aged 0-3 Years Old
| Total MS Population | 144,504 |
| Population Potentially Eligible for Part C | 18,786 |
| By Race/Ethnicity: | |
| White Black Hispanic American Indian Asian/Pacific Islander | 76,489 64,805 8,161 1,258 1,952 |
2023 Mississippi Counties Ranked by Demographic Rates
| Demographic Characteristics Relating to Developmental Delays | Highest Ranking Counties |
| Poverty Rate: | Issaquena, Sunflower, Coahoma, Holmes, Laflore, Sharkey, Bolivar |
| Rate of Non-English Speaking Home: | Adams, Scott, Neshoba, Smith, Bento,Bolivar, Pontotoc |
| Lowest Graduation Rate: | Issaquena, Benton, Quitman, Sunflower, Yazoo, Humphreys, Chickasaw |
To Serve the 13% of the Population Identified as Having Delays Would Require Part C to Enroll Almost 6 times the Number of Children Currently Served.
Other Note Findings
Received services:
- Race was also significantly associated with the proportion of children who received services.
- A smaller proportion of black children received services than did other groups.
- The results of this study indicate that black children were half as likely as were white children to receive services.
- The impact of health insurance on children’s access to Part C services is minimized because Part C services are available to families regardless of their insurance status.
- A significantly higher proportion of children with health insurance received services.
- There is evidence that children who are under child welfare supervision are under-enrolled in Part C.
- There is evidence that children in Early Head Start are under-enrolled in Part C.
In theory, the proportion of children enrolled in Part C in any given state, dependent on the program, should depend on the state’s eligibility criteria, the interpretation of that criteria, and that criteria’s application in the field. However, it seems that states have adopted eligibility criteria without a clear understanding of the number of children who might be eligible for Part C under those criteria.
There are reports of considerable variability in county rates of enrollment within states, raising the questions as to why access is greater in some counties than others.
To serve the estimated 13% of the population of children who were identified as having delays in the study would require Part C to enroll almost 6 times the number of children currently served.
References
- MSDH MSTAHRS Data Query -Births, Population Data https://
mstahrs.msdh.ms.gov/ - United States Department of Agriculture-Poverty Data https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/county-leveldata-
sets/county-level-data-setsdownload-data/ - Census Bureau -Education Attainment (Mississippi by County) https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/hindscountymississippi,MS,US/EDU635221
- Census Vintage Population Estimates https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/technical-documentation/research/evaluationestimates/2020-evaluationestimates.html
- United States Department of Education -Part 303 (Part C)— Early Intervention Program For Infants And Toddlers With Disabilities https://sites.ed.gov/idea/regs/c
