The Foundation for Delaware County has received a five-year, $5,470,000 Healthy Start grant, one of just six awarded in Pennsylvania.

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded more than $100 million in grant funding to 100 organizations across the U.S. through its Healthy Start Initiative: Eliminating Disparities in Perinatal Health (known as Healthy Start).

Administered by HRSA’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Healthy Start aims to improve health outcomes before, during, and after pregnancy and to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in rates of infant death, as well as negative health outcomes in the first 18 months of life.

Healthy Start serves communities with infant mortality rates at least 1.5 times the U.S. national average, and with high rates of other negative maternal and infant outcomes.

“I am thrilled that The Foundation for Delaware County has received this support,” said U.S. Sen. Bob Casey. “The Healthy Start program is crucial for pregnant women, families, and children. I believe that all children deserve a strong start in life, regardless of their circumstance. By laying a solid foundation that includes health, nutrition, safety, and education from the day they are born, we can ensure every child can grow to his or her full potential.”

Funding through The Foundation for Delaware County will support a wide range of services for women, children, and families, including:

• healthcare coordination
• case management
• linkage to social services
• screening for mental health issues
• breastfeeding support
• health and parenting education
• parenting support

In addition, funding will strengthen the health workforce to provide such services, build a more effective and efficient service-delivery system, and promote and improve health equity across participating organizations.

“We are a leader in maternal and child health in our region,” said Joanne Craig, Vice President for Programs at The Foundation for Delaware County. “Along with our Nurse-Family Partnership and WIC nutrition programs, this grant funds an important component of our complement of services and allows us to continue to serve pregnant and parenting women and their families to ensure healthy pregnancies and improved maternal and birth outcomes, supporting health across the life course.

“The Foundation for Delaware County’s Healthy Start program will serve 300 new pregnant women, 300 post-partem women, babies, and children up to 18 months, and 100 fathers/partners per year in the city of Chester and the surrounding 10 small municipalities. We are honored and thrilled to be able to continue and expand these high-impact services for women and children in Delaware County.”

“The goal of Healthy Start is to ensure that women experiencing high rates of poverty, limited access to care, and other socioeconomic factors can have healthy pregnancies and raise healthy children,” said Michael D. Warren, HRSA Associate Administrator for Maternal and Child Health. “Healthy Start aims to address the factors that can interfere with this goal and to provide every woman, child, and family with the best chances to thrive.”

Click here to learn more about Healthy Start.

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