This report reviews the role of school-based health centers (SBHCs) in expanding children's access to health care, and examines financial and other obstacles SBHCs must overcome. The report is based on a literature review; interviews with officials; and case studies conducted at eight SBHCs in California, New Mexico, and New York. The study found that state, local, and private funds supply most of the financing for centers; several federal programs (primarily Medicaid and the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant program) supplement these funds. SBHCs were found to offer children easier access to needed health services by bringing providers to the children, furnishing free or low-cost services, and supplying the atmosphere of trust and confidentiality adolescents need. SBHCs do not, however, provide all health services required by students and cannot reach adolescents who have dropped out of school. Major concerns for SBHCs include a lack of stable financing, recruitment and retention of appropriately trained nurse practitioners and physician assistants, controversy over providing reproductive health services, and difficulty in obtaining guidance on establishing SBHCs or solving problems at existing centers. Research measuring the impact of SBHCs on health and education outcomes is sparse. An appendix contains descriptions of the SBHCs studied. (JDD)