Thomas O’Brien, M.D. board certified obstetrician & gynecologist and Denise Kay, CRNP of the Women’s Health Center of Tyrone and Tyrone Hospital have announced that they are now accepting patients as participating providers in the state of Pennsylvania’s Healthy Beginnings Plus pregnancy care program.
Healthy Beginnings Plus is a program of the state of Pennsylvania designed to provide prenatal care to pregnant women who meet eligibility guidelines. The HBP program provides services that go beyond what is provided for pregnancy care through the traditional Medical Assistance Program.
Thomas O’Brien, M.D., said the Women’s Health Center of Tyrone is very pleased to be a provider of the HBP program as it helps to extend the availability of pregnancy care for women.
“It is very important for women to have proper care during their pregnancy. Women who do not have proper care during their pregnancy put their own health and the health of their baby at risk,” said Dr. O’Brien, noting that his office location will make the program more accessible to women in Northern Blair County and surrounding communities.
There are many factors that can affect the health of mother and baby, during pregnancy and immediately following the birth of a child – including emotional, physical, and medical factors. The HBP program gives women access to a variety of services all with the intent of keeping mother and baby healthy. The program also provides a care coordinator who works closely with the doctor and patient to be sure individual needs are met.
Denise Kay, CRNP, program coordinator, said this program will help assess patient needs that may influence the outcome of their pregnancy and works to get women connected to the services they need. Services included in the HBP program are outpatient prenatal care, inpatient hospital care, childbirth and parenting classes, breastfeeding education and nutritional counseling.
In addition to the standard medical care most people associate with obstetrical care, Kay said sometimes women have special circumstances. Kay said examples of special needs might include such services as smoking cessation, drug and alcohol rehabilitation services and psycohocial support.
Dr. O’Brien said the care mother and newborn need immediately following birth is also very important and the HBP program addresses these needs as well. The care coordinator will also assist women in the weeks immediately following birth to address postpartum needs such as lactation, parent-infant care, interim family planning options, and home health services. Assistance will also be provided to insure the newborn gets off to a healthy start by arranging for such resources as the Pennsylvania Women, Infants, & Children Program Services, and Pediatric Services through the Pennsylvania Early & Periodic Screening Diagnostic and Treatment Program.
Pregnant women with family income of up to 185 percent of the federal poverty guidelines are eligible for the Healthy Beginnings Plus program. The unborn child is counted in the family size calculations. Pregnant women who meet these income and family size criteria are eligible for medical assistance coverage for their maternity care under either the HBP program or the traditional Medical Assistance Program.
Brochures regarding the Healthy Beginnings Plus program are available for pick-up at the Women’s Health Center of Tyrone and in the main lobby at Tyrone Hospital or for more information call the Women’s Health Center of Tyrone at 684-3639 or toll free at 1-888-437-4329.
Effective in 2003, the office of Income Maintenance revised the income limits used to determine Presumptive Eligibility for the Healthy Beginnings Plus program. The new income limits, as in the past, are based on 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines.
Presumptive Eligibility provides temporary Medical Assistance coverage for outpatient prenatal care before a woman is formally determined eligible by the County Assistance Office. PE can be determined by an authorized PE provider or by the local CAO and provides MA benefits for eligible clients for a maximum of 45 days. Please be aware that clients applying for PE benefits must follow up with an appointment to their local CAO for eligibility to continue beyond the 45-day limit.
