HEALTH: BCBSTX Champions Maternal and Infant Health with Expansion of Special Beginnings Program

By Francis Page Jr., Editor for StyleMagazine.com

These factors profoundly influence maternal and infant health outcomes.

The initiative is not confined to a single region. While it has a statewide reach, particular emphasis is directed towards Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, Rio Grande Valley, and Austin.

Apart from the Special Beginnings program, BCBSTX has been active in maternal and infant health through other means. They have amplified the Centering Pregnancy care model and provided hypertension kits to mothers vulnerable to high blood pressure complications.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) has intensified its efforts to bolster maternal and infant health by expanding the Special Beginnings program. This move seeks to widen member benefits and collaborate with community partners to promote the health of mothers and infants throughout Texas.

The expansion comes after concerning state reports. Texas recorded 90% of avoidable pregnancy-related deaths and ranked last in prenatal and maternal health- care accessibility among all US states. This alarming data underscores a national issue where both maternal and infant mortality rates are distressingly high, and there’s a rising need for improved care access, including behavioral health for new mothers.

Dr. Mark Chassay, BCBSTX’s chief medical officer, expressed the significance of this initiative, emphasizing Blue Cross’s deep-rooted history of serving Texas for almost a century. The enhanced Special Beginnings program aims to:

1. Launch impactful maternal health programs to decrease preterm births, low-birth-weight babies, and manage emergencies. www.BCBS.com

2. Broaden healthcare services access, emphasizing behavioral health during all pregnancy phases.

3. Boost public consciousness and community involvement to lessen maternal health disparities, prioritizing a diversified maternal health workforce.

Dr. Angela Moemeka, another senior figure at BCBSTX, highlighted the need for an encompassing approach, considering factors like transportation, housing, medication adherence, and societal biases.

Furthermore, the recent Blue ImpactSM grants for 2023-24 have been awarded to entities focusing on maternal and infant health, including Family Service, Baylor College of Medicine, and Parkland Health Foundation, among others. This program, having granted over $23 million in the past 12+ years, underscores BCBSTX’s enduring pledge to Texas’s children and families’ well-being.