Press Release
July 11, 2016
OHCA Contacts: Jo Kilgore - (405) 522-7474, Jennie Melendez - (405) 522-7404
Oklahoma moms help Text4baby reach its 1 millionth mom milestone
Text4baby, the largest mobile health initiative in the nation, has now enrolled 1 million participants with the help of more than 40,000 Oklahoma moms-to-be and new moms. These mothers have been receiving free health and safety information right on their cell phones.
Pregnant women and new mothers have a lot to remember, like which medications to avoid during pregnancy and when a baby needs vaccinations. Text4baby uses the power of cell phone technology, through text messages and an app, to share essential information, tips and reminders with expectant women and new mothers, and their partners or loved ones.
“Bailey is my second child but it had been a while since I was pregnant and so much changes over the years when it comes to pregnancy and newborns. I felt like I knew nothing,” said Candace Holder, new mom and SoonerCare Text4baby enrollee, pictured. “ I loved that Text4baby was free and it gave me the most recent information on so many important topics for my pregnancy.” Text4baby’s goal from the beginning of this texting initiative was to reach 1 million moms. The odometer rolled to 1 million in May and Oklahoma played a big role. Last year, Oklahoma won the contest as the medium-size state with the most enrollees. In 2014, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA) covered about 60 percent of all births in the state. OHCA strives to make a difference in the health outcomes of expectant moms and newborns in Oklahoma.
Text4baby is jointly operated by ZERO TO THREE and Voxiva, Inc. Pregnant women and new mothers can text "BABY" (or “BEBE” for Spanish) to 511411, and receive weekly text messages, timed to their due date or their baby's birth date through the baby’s first year.
The Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA) administers two key health programs for the state. The first is SoonerCare, Oklahoma’s Medicaid program. SoonerCare works to improve the health outcomes of Oklahomans by ensuring that medically necessary benefits and services are responsive to the health care needs of our members. Qualifying Oklahomans include certain low-income children, seniors, the disabled, those being treated for breast or cervical cancer and those seeking family planning services. The second program OHCA operates is Insure Oklahoma, which assists qualifying adults and small business employees in obtaining health care coverage for themselves and their families. OHCA strives to educate and engage our current 748,077 members regarding personal responsibilities for their health services utilization, behaviors, and outcomes in partnership with a state-wide network of 46,065 providers. For more information, visit www.okhca.org or www.insureoklahoma.org.
