Proper care during your pregnancy allows early diagnosis of disease and identification of some congenital anomalies (birth defects). You can take steps, even before conception, to prevent birth defects and ensure the best development of your baby early in life.
A Healthy Baby Begins With a Healthy Mother
Good prenatal health – even before you become pregnant – and proper care during pregnancy reduces the risk of:
- losing your baby during your pregnancy (miscarriage);
- you or your baby becoming ill;
- your baby being born too soon or too small (premature or low birthweight);
- delivering a baby who has birth defects or is stillborn.
Your lifestyle and choices are an important part of prenatal health for you and your baby. Please read our complete guide to caring for yourself before and during your pregnancy:
As a Medicaid provider, MSDH provides a Perinatal High Risk case management program (PHRM). This program includes a multi-disciplinary range of preventive health services for pregnant women including physical exams, nutrition, social services, health screening, education, counseling, interventions, and referral service as appropriate. The primary objective of the MSDH perinatal health care program is to decrease infant mortality and low birth weight infants by providing health care to pregnant women. By increasing the number of women having access to prenatal care, it is intended to assist with the reduction of infant mortality.
Resources for Healthy Maternity
Community Health Centers around the state provide maternity services at a cost adjusted for your income. Similarly, Federally-Qualified Health Centers provide maternity services regardless of your ability to pay.
Jackson-Area Maternity Classes
Major hospitals and delivery centers offer childbirth and breastfeeding classes at low cost to mothers-to-be and their husbands.
Beginning December 1, 2015, MSDH will no longer enroll new patients for maternity care. For more information, and referral to other service providers, contact your county health department »