The clinics, spread over two floors and 180 sqm, will house a resident OB-GYN and pediatrician with access to the latest medical technology. Expectant mothers will also benefit from on-site birthing facilities in a country with high maternal mortality.  The pilot clinics will be built in Albay, a rural region of Luzon, the Philippines’ largest island. The Philippines is home to approx. 140 million people, many of whom still live below the poverty line.

“Statistics tell the relentless story of needless suffering and death,” reflects Clinics IV Life Founder. Robert Turner.  “For decades we’ve thrown billions of dollars in aid each year at the problem. It remains and, in many instances, worsens year to year. Historical charitable models are flawed.”  Turner adds: “Clinics IV Life was launched by seasoned health professionals who seek to address these shortcomings in novel ways. Our hybrid clinic model removes the need for continued donor funding and integrates into local healthcare systems, removing the dependencies created by historical charitable efforts.”

Each clinic aims to treat 1000 indigent patients annually, making inroads on the high maternal and infant mortality levels plaguing developing nations. The first of the three clinics earmarked for Luzon will open in 2024, followed by openings in late 2024 and 2025. Access to care remains one of the critical reasons mothers die in childbirth.  The leading causes of maternal mortality in the Philippines – like in many emerging nations – include challenges that can be prevented with medical oversight, such as bleeding, infection, unsafe abortion, hypertensive disorders and obstructed labor.

A NEW ECONOMIC MODEL FOR SUSTAINABILITY

Their clinic model relies on a unique shared practice agreement that ensures its clinics are self-sustaining, removing the need for the continued use of donor funds beyond construction and equipping a site. The Not-for-Profit plans to extend its reach into India, Africa and other Asian countries during the next three years.

Unlike traditional charitable models, Clinics for Life will not seek funding from the general public. 

“We form close corporate partnerships with companies that serve the maternal and newborn health markets and share our vision. Our clinic model offers the best ROI in terms of corporate giving. We pair each clinic with a corporate partner and for a single donation a company can generate more than 30 years of health impact in a community. It’s a gift that keeps on giving; both for the patients and the donors,” says Kemi Olugemo, chair of Clinics IV Life’s Fundraising Board, on their approach to funding.

ABOUT MATERNAL AND INFANT MORTALITY 

Every minute, around the globe, four newborns die; every two minutes, an expectant woman dies, often in childbirth. It is estimated that 85% of these deaths, primarily occurring in developing countries, are avoidable with access to proper medical care. In India alone last year, 2.7 million babies were stillborn, and nearly 600 thousand died in their first month.

Historically, women suffer more from health inequalities and require more complex medical interventions than their male counterparts on a more frequent basis. Access to procedures taken for granted in developed nations, like ultrasounds and fetal monitoring, are luxuries in developing countries, only affordable to those with money. 

ABOUT CLINICS IV LIFE 

Clinics IV Life was created specifically to address these health inequities that are commonplace in emerging nations. Their hybrid clinic model overcomes continued reliance on donor funding by creating self-sustaining businesses, obviating the need for financial donor support to ensure the ongoing success of each clinic. Donor funds are only utilized for the construction and equipping of a clinic.

Clinics IV Life views every element of the patient-provider ecosystem as being of equal value, and places great emphasis on ensuring its doctors, nurses and staff can serve their patients in a safe, secure and welcoming environment while having access to the latest medical technology and training and a global network of knowledge provided by colleagues who selflessly volunteer their time and skills.

The Clinics IV Life board of directors includes physicians, pharmacists, psychologists, public health professionals and business leaders who have brought their knowledge, connections and resources to this needed cause.  

Find out more by visiting: https://clinics4life.com/

Clinic IV Life Board members and industry advisors include: 

• Robert Turner – Founding Board Member
• Kemi Olugemo MD FAAN – Chair, Fundraising and Board of Directors
• Shazia Ahmad
• Gil Bashe – Board of Directors
• Grace Delerme
• Hesham Hassaballa MD
• Sharon Handelman-Gotlib
• Karie Hudson MS
• Viveca Livezey MD FAAN
• Jeff Livingston MD, Board of Directors
• Kellie Lease Stecher MD
• Dr. Soojin Jun
• Tom Krohn
• Teresita Pulgarin 
• Bianca Rose Phillips LLB. BComm. GradDipLP. LLM 

Media Contacts:

Kemi Olugemo, MD, FAAN
Board Chair, Fundraising
Tel: +1 (781) 226 0429
Email: kemi.olugemo@clinics4life.com

Gil Bashe
Board Chair, Executive
Cell: +1 (732) 371-0922
Email: gil.bashe@finnpartners.com

The post Clinics IV Life Launches a New Clinic Model to Change the Face of Charitable Maternal Care, Delivery to Impoverished Communities appeared first on Medika Life.

After Texas passes the heartbeat bill limiting abortion access, Representative Rose hopes to prove Texans care about women and children after pregnancy ends.

Dallas Representative Toni Rose sponsored House Bill 133. She proposed extending Medicaid benefits to low-income women after they have a baby. Rose told The Austin Statesman, “For the past few years, I’ve heard from families across the state who have lost loved ones due to complications of childbirth. Believe me when I say that this issue knows no political or geographical boundaries.”

Under current guidelines, pregnant people qualify for Medicaid for sixty days after delivery. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Texas extended postpartum Medicaid coverage for one year. Some women qualify for a Healthy Texas Women program that provides contraception access and basic primary care coverage.

House Bill 133 is titled “Relating to the provision of certain benefits under Medicaid and the Healthy Texas Women program, including the transition of case management for children and pregnant women program services and Healthy Texas Women program services to a managed care program.”

The bill would allow pregnant people who qualify for Medicaid to continue their health coverage for twelve months after having a baby. The bill passed the Texas House in bipartisan fashion 121-24. The Texas Senate amended the bill reducing the coverage from twelve to six months. The Texas Medical Association is lobbying to extend health coverage back to one year.

Preexisting medical conditions cause many pregnancy complications. To address preexisting conditions, patients need access to medical providers. Primary care, Obgyn, and specialist care before, during, and after pregnancy reduce the risk of maternal deaths.

Many Americans access the US Health system through the Medicaid program. Medicaid covers almost half of the births in our country. In Texas, 54% of pregnant women qualify for Medicaid. But many states, like Texas, chose not to expand Medicaid under the provisions of the Affordable Care Act.

Federal law dictates states must provide prenatal coverage through the Medicaid program. Pregnant women with family incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level qualify for mandatory prenatal coverage.

Medicaid coverage does not begin until the pregnant woman completes the pregnancy verification process. For many women, this process is slow and arduous. Federally mandated prenatal coverage also ends sixty days postpartum.

In Texas, we provide Medicaid AFTER patients get pregnant and take it away when they deliver. Women gain temporary access to the US health system once they become pregnant and lose access once they deliver their baby. Health providers lose many opportunities to address health needs and prevent complications.

Pregnant people qualify for free health coverage through Medicaid for Pregnant Women, which makes Medicaid available during pregnancy and for two months after birth if they fall under certain monthly income thresholds based on family size ($2,126 or less for a single woman or $3,624 for a family of three).

But to qualify after the two-month postpartum period, the income threshold is significantly lower: $196 a month for a mother with one child or $230 for a mother with two children ($285 a month for a two-parent household with two children).

The maternal mortality rate in Texas is above the national average. According to 2018 data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the estimated maternal mortality rate (women who died while pregnant or within 42 days of delivery) was 17.4 deaths per 100,000 live births. In Texas, the maternal mortality rate was 18.5 deaths — that’s nearly 700 deaths nationally and about 70 in Texas each year.

Black and other women of color are two to three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women. This risk increases with age. For women over the age of 30, the risk of dying during or after pregnancy is the risk dying before or after pregnancy is four to five times higher than white women.

The 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA) increased coverage in our country, but millions of Americans are still without health insurance.

The lack of access to high-quality, affordable healthcare increases poor health outcomes and widens the racial disparities.

Why do pregnant women die?

1. Cardiomyopathy and another cardiac disease
2. Thrombotic pulmonary embolism
3. Preeclampsia and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy
4. Hemorrhage
5. Cerebrovascular accidents (strokes)
6. Infections

Representative Toni Rose proposed House Bill 133 to bridge the gap, ensuring Texas provides care for pregnant people after they give birth. This legislation will save lives.

Representative Toni Rose is serving her fourth term in the Texas House of Representatives. District 10 covers the diverse communities of Oak Cliff, Highland Hills, Pleasant Grove, Balch Springs, and Mesquite.

Representative Rose was born and raised in Dallas. Her passions are mental health, social justice, and criminal justice. Her biography states she works on legislation to help “mental health reform, access to affordable healthcare, improving the quality of life for our aging population and underserved communities.”

Mental health access is a key component of her legislation. One in seven women suffers from postpartum depression. Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders can occur anytime from conception to one year after the delivery of a baby.

Perinatal depression is darker and debilitating. A mom feels unable to function for an extended period. Women need access to mental health care to address their needs when certain symptoms are present.

Postpartum depression symptoms include crying spells, feeling sad, feelings of hopelessness, and feeling guilty. Some may express a lack of happiness or feel the absence of bonding with the baby. Some may have feelings of hurt themselves or their baby. All of these symptoms indicate it is time to seek medical attention.

A study written by Mathematica in collaboration with St. David’s Foundation and Texans Care for Children examined the economic impact on Texas for failing to provide postpartum mental health care. Texas loses 2.2 billion dollars each year by not providing access to care for people after having a baby.

HB 133 is an opportunity for Texas to show we care about pregnant during and after delivery. A bipartisan group of Dallas leaders in the Texas House of representatives is working together on prison reform. Let’s hope more leaders come together to support Representative Rose’s common-sense legislation to save tax-payer money and save the lives of new Texas mothers.

The post Dallas Representative Toni Rose Fighting for Medicaid Extension for Women After Having a Baby appeared first on Medika Life.

Both organizations will work together to bridge racial disparities impacting pregnant women across the country.

DATE OF RELEASE: Aug, 10, 2020

ARLINGTON, Va. /PRNewswire/ — March of Dimes, the leader in the fight for the health of all moms and babies, and longtime partner Anthem Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Anthem, Inc., today announced a $1.1 million grant with their latest plans to tackle America’s maternal and infant health crisis, which is particularly devastating for communities of color. The partnership aims to close the health equity gap by addressing the racial disparities and social determinants of health that have disproportionally impacted Black mothers who are more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes and have premature babies compared to all other women.

The new grant will support programs in 16 states and Washington D.C with a core component of the grant focusing on health equity partnerships with more than 20 hospitals, which includes Breaking Through Implicit Bias in Maternal Healthcare training. According to the 2003 National Academies for Science, Engineering and Medicine, “racial and ethnic minorities tend to receive a lower quality of healthcare than non-minorities, even when access-related factors, such as patients’ insurance status and income, are controlled.” In response, March of Dimes developed this training, in collaboration with Quality Interactions, to improve patient-provider communications and treatment decisions, contributing to improved quality of care at a critical intervention point. The course provides an overview of implicit bias, its impact on the maternal infant health crisis, history of structural racism in the United States, strategies for providers to both mitigate racial bias in maternity care and to commit to a culture of equity.

The grant will also support programs for moms and babies, such as Supportive Pregnancy Care and interconception care.  Through Supportive Pregnancy Care, pregnant women receive their clinical care, share support with other women at a similar stage in pregnancy, and gain knowledge and skills related to pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting. Interconception care programs help new moms to get information and services that promote birth spacing, smoking cessation, and mental health.

“The U.S. is in the midst of a maternal and infant health crisis, which is particularly devastating to women and babies of color. Data show that the U.S. remains among the most dangerous developed nations in the world for childbirth,” said Dr. Rahul Gupta, Chief Medical and Health Officer, Senior Vice President and Interim Chief Scientific Officer at March of Dimes. “Roughly every 12 hours a woman dies from pregnancy-related causes, and the CDC reports that 60 percent are preventable.  Programs like these, supported by the Anthem Foundation, are invaluable in making a positive impact for moms and babies.”

In the U.S. Black women are three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causesⁱ and Black babies are twice as likely to die before their first birthdaysⁱⁱ compared to their White counterparts. Systemic racial injustice has affected not only health care, but also social determinants of health, such as  access to food, education, housing and jobs. These factors, together with the direct experience of racial discrimination and unequal treatment, have built a health equity gap that is directly and negatively impacting moms and babies of color.

“Anthem and its Foundation continue to lead with our commitment to improving lives and communities across our nation,” said Razia Hashmi, MD, MPH, Vice President for Commercial Clinical Operations at Anthem. “For over 10 years, our partnership with March of Dimes has provided over 47,000 individuals with access to care. We are working tirelessly to create enduring change in communities across the country, and addressing the factors driving disparities in our health system and in society as a whole.”

Over the past decade, Anthem Foundation has contributed close to $8 million to support March of Dimes programs aimed at reducing premature birth across the country. These programs have had a significant impact with only 7.3 percent of participants in group prenatal care delivering prematurely, compared to a national average of 10 percent.

About March of Dimes
March of Dimes leads the fight for the health of all moms and babies. We support research, lead programs and provide education and advocacy so that every baby can have the best possible start. Building on a successful 80-year legacy of impact and innovation, we empower every mom and every family. Visit marchofdimes.org or nacersano.org for more information. Visit shareyourstory.org for comfort and support. Find us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram and Twitter.

About Anthem Foundation
The Anthem Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Anthem, Inc. and through charitable contributions and programs, the Foundation promotes the organization’s commitment to improving lives and communities. Through strategic partnerships and programs, the Foundation addresses the social drivers that will help create a healthier generation of Americans in communities that Anthem, Inc. and its affiliated health plans serve.  The Foundation focuses its funding on critical initiatives that make up its Healthy Generations Program, a multi-generational initiative that targets: maternal health, diabetes prevention, cancer prevention, heart health and healthy, active lifestyles, behavioral health efforts and programs that benefit people with disabilities. The Foundation also coordinates the company’s year-round Dollars for Dollars program which provides a 100 percent match of associates’ donations, as well as its Volunteer Time Off and Dollars for Doers community service programs. To learn more about the Anthem Foundation, please visit http://www.anthem.foundation and its blog at https://medium.com/anthemfoundation.

ⁱ [Petersen EE, Davis NL, Goodman D, et al. Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Pregnancy-Related Deaths-United States, 2007-2016. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2019;68(35):762–765.]↩
ⁱⁱ [Ely DM, Driscoll AK. Infant mortality in the United States, 2017: Data from the period linked birth/infant death file. National Vital Statistics Reports, vol 68 no 10. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2019.]↩

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