NC Latino health, 2003 a report from the Latino Health Task Force, North Carolina Institute of Medicine ; in Collaboration with El Pueblo, Inc. - Page 88 |
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Community health centers and other providers also provide uncompensated
prenatal care. One Task Force member commented that it is actually financially
disadvantageous to encourage pregnant Latinas to seek early prenatal care, as
there will be more uncompensated costs to the clinics. While Medicaid will
cover the costs of the delivery ( emergency Medicaid), it will not cover the costs
of providing prenatal care. Another problem noted is that some women may
have health insurance coverage through work, but the cards are not in their
own names. This makes it difficult for them to use their insurance coverage for
prenatal care, delivery, or other health- related needs ( see Chapter 7).
In the past, the March of Dimes has helped fund a folic acid awareness cam-paign
along with some state funds. Although folic acid awareness is no longer a
national March of Dimes funding priority, the North Carolina chapter continues
to provide some support for the campaign. Folic acid has been shown to signifi-cantly
reduce birth defects; a multivitamin with folic acid taken prior to concep-tion
can reduce the incidence of neural tube birth defects by 70%. Thus far, the
state's folic acid awareness campaign has targeted Latina women only to a lim-ited
extent, even though Latinas are at higher risk for having babies with a neu-ral
tube defects. Campaign activities for the 2002- 03 fiscal year include an
expansion of outreach to the Latino community. An effective outreach campaign
would involve the faith- based organizations and Spanish media ( newspaper,
radio, and television).
Family Planning17
The Women's Health Branch of the Division of Public Health helps fund four
family planning pilot projects aimed at Latinos. The funds are provided to four
agencies in three counties ( two in Planned Parenthood agencies, one in a com-munity
health center, and one in a family resource center). Funding is used for
outreach, transportation, and language services in addition to contraceptives.
Currently, the programs serve approximately 1,000 Latinos. The state's goal is to
eventually expand these initiatives for the entire state.
North Carolina can improve access to family planning services by expanding
community clinic- based preventive service projects and expanding access to
contraceptive methods of choice. The pilot projects demonstrate that Latinas are
more willing to use family planning services when offered in community- based
settings with pre- existing ties to the Latina community. Health care providers
are not as well trained in the use of contraceptive methods that are favored with
Latinas, including IUDs and natural family planning. Several years ago, IUDs
fell out of favor with US doctors because of the litigation surrounding the
Dalcon Shield. Now there are safe and effective IUDs, and there is a need to
retrain doctors and other health professionals in IUD insertion. The Women's
Health Branch has started to address this by offering trainings on natural family
planning and IUD insertions. Additional training is necessary to ensure that
there are sufficient numbers of providers to insert IUDs or counsel women on
natural family planning methods.
Additionally, the state is seeking a Medicaid waiver that would enable all
Medicaid- eligible women with incomes below 185% of the federal poverty
NC Latino Health 2003
62 Chapter 5
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| Title | NC Latino health, 2003 a report from the Latino Health Task Force, North Carolina Institute of Medicine ; in Collaboration with El Pueblo, Inc. - Page 88 |
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| Full Text | Community health centers and other providers also provide uncompensated prenatal care. One Task Force member commented that it is actually financially disadvantageous to encourage pregnant Latinas to seek early prenatal care, as there will be more uncompensated costs to the clinics. While Medicaid will cover the costs of the delivery ( emergency Medicaid), it will not cover the costs of providing prenatal care. Another problem noted is that some women may have health insurance coverage through work, but the cards are not in their own names. This makes it difficult for them to use their insurance coverage for prenatal care, delivery, or other health- related needs ( see Chapter 7). In the past, the March of Dimes has helped fund a folic acid awareness cam-paign along with some state funds. Although folic acid awareness is no longer a national March of Dimes funding priority, the North Carolina chapter continues to provide some support for the campaign. Folic acid has been shown to signifi-cantly reduce birth defects; a multivitamin with folic acid taken prior to concep-tion can reduce the incidence of neural tube birth defects by 70%. Thus far, the state's folic acid awareness campaign has targeted Latina women only to a lim-ited extent, even though Latinas are at higher risk for having babies with a neu-ral tube defects. Campaign activities for the 2002- 03 fiscal year include an expansion of outreach to the Latino community. An effective outreach campaign would involve the faith- based organizations and Spanish media ( newspaper, radio, and television). Family Planning17 The Women's Health Branch of the Division of Public Health helps fund four family planning pilot projects aimed at Latinos. The funds are provided to four agencies in three counties ( two in Planned Parenthood agencies, one in a com-munity health center, and one in a family resource center). Funding is used for outreach, transportation, and language services in addition to contraceptives. Currently, the programs serve approximately 1,000 Latinos. The state's goal is to eventually expand these initiatives for the entire state. North Carolina can improve access to family planning services by expanding community clinic- based preventive service projects and expanding access to contraceptive methods of choice. The pilot projects demonstrate that Latinas are more willing to use family planning services when offered in community- based settings with pre- existing ties to the Latina community. Health care providers are not as well trained in the use of contraceptive methods that are favored with Latinas, including IUDs and natural family planning. Several years ago, IUDs fell out of favor with US doctors because of the litigation surrounding the Dalcon Shield. Now there are safe and effective IUDs, and there is a need to retrain doctors and other health professionals in IUD insertion. The Women's Health Branch has started to address this by offering trainings on natural family planning and IUD insertions. Additional training is necessary to ensure that there are sufficient numbers of providers to insert IUDs or counsel women on natural family planning methods. Additionally, the state is seeking a Medicaid waiver that would enable all Medicaid- eligible women with incomes below 185% of the federal poverty NC Latino Health 2003 62 Chapter 5 |
