Optum awards $1.4 million in maternal health grants to five community organizations
The grants are part of several initiatives by Optum to address maternal health outcomes and disparities across the U.S.
Photo: Jose Luis Pelaez Inc/Getty Images
UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Optum has awarded $1.4 million in maternal health grants, and will provide pro bono services to five community organizations aimed at improving maternal health outcomes and increasing healthcare access for underserved populations, the company announced on Wednesday.
Dr. Janice Huckaby, chief medical officer, Maternal-Child Health at Optum, said the goal is to partner with these organizations to help improve the health of mothers and newborns and to raise awareness about maternal health and race-related disparities in the delivery of healthcare.
WHAT'S THE IMPACT
The grants are part of several initiatives by Optum and UnitedHealth Group to address maternal health outcomes and disparities across the U.S., including a $3 million contribution to help improve access to prenatal care in underserved communities in New York and a $2.6 million grant in Nevada to reduce maternal health disparities and help grow the state's OB-GYN and family medicine physician workforce.
The grants include $500,000 to Community of Hope in Washington D.C. to serve more pregnant women -- primarily persons of color and low-income individuals -- in their community-centered maternal and infant health program.
Wake Forest Baptist Health, based in Winston Salem, North Carolina, will receive $200,000 to create a program that will identify, in clinics and upon hospital admission, pregnant women suffering from intimate partner violence, to provide support and resources.
Cradle Cincinnati in Ohio will receive $400,000 to reduce preterm births among Black women by expanding its infant mortality reduction strategy to other cities in the U.S.; while Ladies of Hope Ministries in New York City will get $200,000 to provide doula training, certification and birth support for current and formerly incarcerated pregnant women.
Atlanta-based Morehouse School of Medicine, meanwhile, will benefit from $95,000 to support research to gain a better understanding of "Maternal Near Miss" among Black women. An MNM is when a woman nearly dies, but survives, from a complication during pregnancy or childbirth, or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy. The study will recruit and interview 120 women who represent underserved markets, including Georgia, Louisiana, New Jersey and Washington D.C.
To date, UnitedHealth Group has provided more than $11 million in philanthropic grants to support maternal health.
THE LARGER TREND
The Lancet found that the U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate of all developed countries, and is the only industrialized nation with a rising rate.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 60% of pregnancy-related deaths are thought to be preventable, and patients of color face the greatest risk of death and complication. Multiple factors contribute to these disparities, including variation in quality healthcare, underlying chronic conditions, structural racism and implicit bias.
Twitter: @JELagasse
Email the writer: jeff.lagasse@himssmedia.com
