OBJECTIVE: Parents of children with special health care needs (CSHCN) are at risk for work loss as a result of the complex health needs of their children. Our objective was to determine how child- and family-level factors and the medical home are associated with work loss for these families.

METHODS: We performed secondary data analyses of the National Survey of Children With Special Health Care Needs (NS-CSHCN) 2005-2006. This is a nationally representative sample of CSHCN in the United States. The primary outcome measure was having any family member report work loss to care for a CSHCN. We calculated survey-weighted unadjusted and adjusted odds ratios by using independent variables that included child demographic factors, functional limitation, condition stability, insurance status/type, family income, and criteria of the medical home.

RESULTS: Overall, 23.7% of the parents of CSHCN reported work loss as a result of their child's health care needs. Greater functional limitation and condition instability were associated with increased odds of family work loss. The presence of a medical home in the multivariate model was associated with a 50% reduction in the odds of reported family work loss.

CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 24% of families with CSHCN have experienced work loss to meet the medical needs of their child. Availability of a system of care support, such as the medical home, is associated with lower work loss reported by families. Therefore, improved systems of care for CSHCN may have the potential to optimize work productivity for families.