MEDICAID: FL Launches Family Planning Outreach Campaign
A $500,000 marketing campaign is underway to tell new mothers in Florida that "[t]wo years apart is baby smart," and to inform them about extended Medicaid-funded family planning services, the St. Petersburg Times reports. Last year, Florida extended new mothers' Medicaid eligibility for an additional two years for contraceptives, physical exams, counseling, limited STD treatment and testing, and transportation. Previously, Medicaid recipients received such services for only two months after giving birth. Cheryl Robbins, family planning director for the Florida Department of Health, said the state is promoting family planning to prevent abortions and to reduce both the family trauma and medical costs associated with low birth weight babies -- a possible consequence when birth intervals are too short. Ads for the "two years apart" program are airing on television and radio stations and being posted on billboards and brochures. Low-income mothers are the target population, with the five-year program aiming to reach 45,000 mothers (Krueger, St. Petersburg Times, 5/3).
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