The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas Special Beginnings® (BCBSTX) and Centering Healthcare Institute (CHI) are pleased to offer up to 20 Implementation Awards from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas Special Beginnings® initiative to help clinical practices implement the CenteringPregnancy care model. The service awards are available in the four county regions in the state of Texas including Harris, Dallas, Travis and Hidalgo. The goals for this initiative include:

1. Reduce the rates of preterm birth, low birth weight babies, and NICU admissions
2. Improve prenatal and postpartum visit compliance with participating members
3. Improve access to high quality and patient-centered maternity care for communities at risk for poor birth outcomes.

Award Details

These awards will cover two years of implementation support from the CHI team including:

• First year annual site license fee
• First year implementation support
• First year Kickoff Day site visit
• Centering Facilitation training workshop for up to 15 participants
• Second year annual site license fee
• Second year implementation support
• Site accreditation visit and determination

Retail value of technical assistance services = $38,675.

IMPORTANT: This is NOT a monetary award. It is an award for in-kind services.

Award Qualification Criteria

• Practice must be an FQHC or look-alike, Indian Health Service site, CAH Birthing Centers, Community Health Clinics, or a qualifying practice
• Practice must be located in one of these counties in the State of Texas: Travis, Harris, Dallas or Hidalgo
• Practice must be in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas
• Provide obstetric primary care that will transition to CenteringPregnancy
• Have adequate patient volume for group care (e.g. 150 obstetric patients per year per location for CenteringPregnancy)
• Have a group space identified that is appropriate for CenteringPregnancy (if the room is not dedicated, Centering will have priority use)
• All applicants must submit a completed Centering Readiness Assessment and meet the basic requirements for becoming and remaining a Centering practice

How to Apply

Please submit a Centering Readiness Assessment and schedule a follow up call with CHI Practice Services. Please indicate that you are interested in being considered for this opportunity.

Qualified practices will be contacted with any additional next steps.

Expectations of Grantees

Awardees will be required to complete the following documentation before starting implementation. Click to view and download samples:

• Master Site License Sample

Expected Deliverables

Once the site starts to implement Centering, these are the expected deliverables.

Submission Timeline

There is no deadline for application. Awards will be made to qualified practices on a first come first serve basis until 20 awards have been issued.

Questions

For questions regarding the CenteringPregnancy model, CenteringPregnancy basic readiness guidelines, licensure, and accreditation, please contact CHI at: help@Centeringhealthcare.org