What if we told you there’s a Federal government program that reaches thousands of America’s most disadvantaged people, dramatically improves access to essential pre-natal health care, and, quite probably, saves taxpayers at least as much as it spends every year? You’d probably say “Tell me more!”. The program is called Healthy Start and it’s funded and administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).
Healthy Start focuses on reaching at-risk pregnant women and providing access to pre-natal care, counseling, education, coaching, and encouragement. Research has repeatedly shown that these at-risk pregnancies often result in premature births, low birth weight infants, and numerous complications for both the mother and newborn. Healthy Start teaches “moms-to-be” about the importance of good nutrition, the need to eliminate cigarette and alcohol consumption, and other key lifestyle changes that dramatically improve the odds of a healthy infant at birth. The costs of health care alone for a significantly premature infant can exceed $1 million in the first few months of life. Low birth weight babies have substantially greater health problems as well as a greater risk of delayed learning. Reducing these and other consequences by changing the behaviors of the mother during their pregnancies can result in substantial cost savings, making Healthy Start a program that may, in fact, pay for itself.
Once a child is born, Healthy Start promotes breastfeeding as research has shown that it can significantly benefit both infant and mother. Breastfeeding provides nutritional advantages as well as bonding time for mother and child. Here again, the improved outcomes are physical as well and emotional for both mother and her infant.
The total annual budget for the Healthy Start program is just over $100 million, an amount about equal to what the federal government spends every 20 minutes of every hour of every day. The return on this investment in Healthy Start is nothing short of extraordinary. For example, the state of Maryland estimates it saves at least $7 million annually thanks to the results of Healthy Start.
There are nearly 100 Healthy Start program operating across the U.S., most serving lower income and/or minority populations including six that specifically address the needs of Native American and Native Hawaiian communities. These communities face some of the greatest challenges due to high levels of unemployment and poverty as well as geographic dispersion. Infant mortality rates among Native American and Native Hawaiian communities are two to three times higher than for White Americans.
Rick Haverkate, Director of Public Health for the Michigan Inter-Tribal Council, a consortium of Native American tribes in Michigan, said, “Healthy Start’s community-based maternal and child health care model is succeeding where other programs have failed with Native populations. Healthy Start is uniquely positioned to address racial and ethnic disparities experienced by Native people, to support the development of innovative, holistic and culturally appropriate strategies to address risky behaviors, and to put Native people at the helm of educating the public — all of this from the grass-roots, community level. In addition, Healthy Start programs seek to combat racism, discrimination, and unequal treatment, and as such, are agents of social justice within health care arenas.”
Mary Beth Badura, Director of the HRSA Maternal and Child Health Bureau, notes ‘Healthy Start is a truly effective program that brings resources directly to the people who need them. The program reaches over 80,000 pregnant women each year in 37 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Many of the women we serve are young, alone, and scared. Their Healthy Start contact is a lifeline during a time of need. The ability of the program to reach so many at-risk pregnant women significantly improves the chances that these women can have healthy babies that get a great start on growing up healthy, physically, mentally, and emotionally. That good start gives these youngest Americans a much better chance to be lead successful and productive lives.”
Traci Karaja is a participant in Healthy Start who lives in the Hannahville Indian Community in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. “Becoming pregnant introduced me to a supportive program called Healthy Start and, most importantly, to an amazing friend, Lori, the Healthy Start nurse. With this program, I became a mother with knowledge to help my babies grow healthy and strong.”
For more information on how Healthy Start is changing lives for the better in your community, a list of Healthy Start programs is provided below. Please contact the individuals listed or Peggy Sanchez Mills, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Healthy Start Association at (202) 296-2195.
Alabama
Birmingham — Birmingham Healthy Start — Rickey Green (205) 324-4133
Mobile — Mobile Teen Center — Kelly Warren (251) 694-5039
Arkansas
Mississippi County — Mississippi County Healthy Start Initiative – Maria Towery (870) 776-1054
Arizona
Phoenix — South Phoenix Healthy Start — Lisa Derrick (602) 304-1166
California
San Leandro – Alameda County Healthy Start — Dani Taylor — (510) 618-2080
Fresno — Babies First — Sandra Arakelian — (559) 445-2746
Compton — Shields for Families Healthy Start — Charlene Smith — (310) 668-9091 x106
Colorado
Aurora — The Healthy Start Project — Debbie Kunkel — (303) 695-1670 x111
Connecticut
New Haven – New Haven Healthy Start — (203) 777-2387 x219
District of Columbia
DC Healthy Start Wards 5&6 — Diane Davis — (202) 698-0772
Healthy Families healthy Start — Laura Charles-Horne — (202) 420-7104
Florida
Jacksonville — The Magnolia Project — Rhonda Brown — (904) 924-1570 x12
St. Petersburg — Pinellas Healthy Start — (727) 824-6900 x11249
Boynton Beach — Boynton Beach Healthy Start — Kim Bradley (561) 70-7000 x2216
Tallahassee — Gadsden Healthy Start — Maurine Jones — (850) 577-1421
Tampa — Central Hillsborough Healthy Start — Estrellita “Lo” Berry — (813) 974-0312
Georgia
Augusta – Augusta Partnership for Children , Inc. – Robettea McKenzie (706) 721-1040
Augusta — Enterprise Community Healthy Start Sandra Pittman (706) 721-8311
Atlanta — Atlanta Healthy Start — Jemea Smith (404) 688-9202 x19
Dublin — Heart of Georgia Healthy Start — Margaret Turner (478) 274-7616
Hawaii
Honolulu — Big Island Disparities Project — Althea Momi Kamau (808) 733-4044
Illinois
Chicago — Chicago Healthy Start — Jerry Wynn — (312) 793-4662
Chicago — Greater Englewood Healthy Start — April Watkins (312) 745-1309
Chicago — Healthy Start Southeast Chicago — George Smith — (708) 841-9515 x2234
Chicago — Westside Healthy Start — Marsha Herring — (773) 257-2425
Chicago Heights — Aunt Martha’s Healthy Start — Alice Sartore — (708) 754-1044
East St Louis — East Saint Louis Healthy Start — Paula Brodie (618) 271-2503
Indiana
Indianapolis — Indianapolis Healthy Start — Yvonne Beasley — (317) 221-2312
Hammond — Northwest Indiana Healthy Start — Rise Ross Ratney — (219) 989-3939
Iowa
Des Moines — Des Moines Healthy Start Project — Darby Taylor — (515) 557-9012
Kansas
Wichita — Northeast Wichita Healthy Start Initiative — Susan Wilson — (316) 660-7386
Kentucky
Louisville — Louisville Metro Healthy Start — Ryan Irvine — (502) 574-5275
Williamsburg — Voices of Appalachia Healthy Start — Peggy Henderson — (606) 549-9296
Louisiana
Baton Rouge — Family Road Healthy Start — Charletta Montgomery — (225) 201-8888
Lafayette — Family Tree Healthy Start – Glynis DeRoche — (337) 295-7021
Monroe — Healthy Start ABCs — Gatha Green — (318) 330-7700
New Orleans — New Orleans Healthy Start — Pharissa Dixon — (504) 658-2809
Maryland
Baltimore — Baltimore City Healthy Start — Natasha Ramberg — (410) 396-7318
Massachusetts
Boston – Boston Healthy Start — Xandra Negron — (617) 534-7828
Worcester — Worcester Healthy Start — George Mike Portuphy — (508) 854-2124
Michigan
Detroit — Detroit Healthy Start — Carolynn Rowland — (313) 876-4902
Flint — Genesee County Healthy Start John McKellar — (810) 424-4352
Grand Rapids — Strong Beginnings — Peggy Vander Meulen — (616) 331-5838
Kalamazoo — Healthy Babies — Healthy Start in Kalamazoo — Carmen Sweezy (269) 373-5165
Saginaw — Great Beginnings Healthy Start — Dawn Shanafelt — (989) 758-3853
Sault Ste Marie — Maajtaag Mnobmaadzid — A Start of a Healthy Life — Rick Haverkate — (906) 632-6896 x134
Minnesota
Minneapolis — Twin Cities Healthy Start — Doriscile Everett O’Neal — (612) 673-2622
Mississippi
Greenville — Delat Health Partners Healthy Start — John Bierma — (662) 335-4300
Missouri
Kansas City — Kansas City Healthy Start — Jean Craig — (816) 283-6242 x225
Portageville — Missouri Bootheel Healthy Start — Cynthia Dean — (573) 379-2020 x327
St. Louis — Maternal, Child and Family Health Coalition — Sandii Handrick — (314) 289-5680
Nebraska
Omaha — Omaha Healthy Start — Judith Hill — (402) 455-2229
New Jersey
Camden — HMHB Healthy Start — Wanda Roby-Dutton — (856) 963-1013
East Orange — Isaiah House Healthy Start — Sandra Schwartz — (609) 292-5616
Trenton — Childrens’ Futures — June Gray — (609) 989-3307
New Mexico
Deming — Luna County Healthy Start — Linda Macias-Miller — (505) 546-9254
Las Cruces — Dona Ana Healthy Start — Jonah Garcia — (505) 524-0767
New York
Brooklyn — Healthy Start/Brooklyn — Tamara Benjamin Green — (646) 253-5618
Manhattan — Central Harlem Healthy Start — Segrid Renne — (212) 665-2600 x324
Rochester — Healthy Start Rochester — Patricia Brantingham — (585) 546-4930 x211
Syracuse — Syracuse Healthy Start — Kathleen Coughlin — (315) 435-2920
North Carolina
Pembroke — Healthy Start Corps — Linda Greaver — (910) 521-6181
Raleigh — NC Eastern Baby Love Plus Healthy Start — Belinda Pettiford — (919) 707-5699
Raleigh — NC Northeastern Baby Love Plus Healthy Start — Belinda Pettiford — (919) 707-5699
Raleigh — NC Triad Baby Love Plus Healthy Start — Belinda Pettiford — (919) 707-5699
Ohio
Cleveland — Cleveland Moms First — Lisa Matthews — (216) 664-4281
Columbus — Columbus Healthy Start/Caring for 2 – Grace Kolliesuah — (614) 645-1697
Oklahoma
Oklahoma City — Central Oklahoma Healthy Start — Don Anderson — (405) 769-3301 x1263
Tulsa — Tulsa Healthy Start — Corrina Jackson — (918) 595-4404
Oregon
Medford — Family Foundations — Lillian Koppelman — (541) 774-8095
Portland — Healthy Birth Initiative — Sharon Smith — (503) 988-3387
Pennsylvania
Chester — Crozer-Keystone Healthy Start — Joanne Craig — (610) 497-7460
Philadelphia — North Philadelphia Healthy Start Project — Deborah Roebuck — (215) 685-5255
Philadelphia — Southwest & West Phila. Healthy Start Project — Deborah Roebuck — (215) 685-5255
Pittsburgh — Pittsburgh/Allegheny County Healthy Start — Cheryl Squire Flint — (412) 247-4009
Uniontown — Fayette County Healthy Start – Cheryl Squire Flint — (412) 247-4009 x 344
West Chester — Healthy Start for Chester County — Renee Fairconeture — (610) 344-5370 x107
Puerto Rico
San Juan — Puerto Rico Healthy Start — Teresa Taboas — (787) 274-5677
South Carolina
Columbia — Palmetto Healthy Start — Kimberly Alston — (803) 296-2786
Denmark — Low Country Healthy Start — Virginia Berry White — (803) 793-6000
Florence – Pee Dee Healthy Start — Madie Robinson — (843) 662-1482
South Dakota
Rapid City — Northern Plains Healthy Start — Lisa Dobyns — (605) 721-1922
Tennessee
Memphis — Memphis & Shelby County Healthy Start — Calondra Tibbs — (901) 545-7099
Texas
Dallas — Dallas Healthy Start — Gerilyn Laurence — (214) 590-2586
Ft Worth — Forth Worth Healthy Start — Barbara Beaty — (817) 534-0814 x3923
Harlingen — Valley Primary Care Network Healthy Start — Gloria Casas — (956) 425-6205
Houston — Sunny Futures — Healthy Start — Walter Jones — (713) 669-5250
Laredo — BCFS Healthy Start Laredo — Cindi Garcia — (956) 712-4700
San Antonio — San Antonio Healthy Start — Paola Tovar-Kurth — (210) 299-5035
Virginia
Richmond — Richmond Healthy Start — Rose Stith Singleton — (804) 646-3340
Richmond — Virginia Healthy Start Initiative/Loving Steps — Linda Foster — (804) 864-7764
West Virginia
Morgantown — West Virginia Healthy Start H.A.P.I. – Penny Womeldorff — (304) 293-1560
Wisconsin
Lac du Flambeau — Honoring Our Children With a Healthy Start — Barbara Stoddard — (715) 588-3324 x122
Milwaukee — Milwaukee Healthy Beginnings — Pat McManus — (414) 933-0064
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