Provider Alert! Service Planning for Pregnant Women during COVID-19

Attention: OB/GYN Providers
Effective Date: June 26, 2020

Providers should monitor the Texas Children’s Health Plan (TCHP) Provider Portal regularly for alerts and updates associated to the COVID-19 event.  TCHP reserves the right to update and/or change this information without prior notice due to the evolving nature of the COVID-19 event.

The content in this message will remain in effect throughout the COVID-19 Disaster Declaration period as announced by the office of the Texas Governor, Greg Abbott.  COVID-19 Utilization Management Procedure and provider alerts can be found here: http://www.thecheckup.org/provider-alerts/

Call to action: Texas Children’s Health Plan (TCHP) is aligned with Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) guidance regarding outreach and education for pregnant members. As part of the routine care management program at TCHP for pregnant members, outreach is being performed and services plans are created or updated as needed.

Additionally, HHSC recommends including the following topics for outreach and education to pregnant members:

• COVID-19 screening, including but not limited to: checking for symptoms, COVID-19 testing, recent travel, home quarantine status
• An Emergency Disaster Plan, including but not limited to: identifying needs and making plans regarding their medical care/ supplies, living situation, transportation, and health care providers
• Education on current recommendations for pregnant/postpartum women
• Encouraging communication with member’s individual obstetric providers, especially related to:
  • Informing providers if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or exposed to people with COVID-19 symptoms
  • Getting up-to-date on vaccinations including the influenza vaccine for the 2019-2020 season
  • Asking about availability of telehealth or telemedicine options
  • Making a backup plan for delivery if hospital capacity changes
  • Discussing breastfeeding recommendations in the event the member is diagnosed with COVID-19
  • Planning for postpartum care needs
• Ensure pregnant members are connected with their maternal health care providers to understand the policies of the hospital at which members plan to deliver in relation to:
  • Support person and visitors
  • Separation policy in the event the member is diagnosed with COVID-19 (How will mother and baby be roomed?)
  • Breastfeeding policy in the event the member is diagnosed with COVID-19 or other infectious illness (are breast pumps and/or lactation consultants available in-house?)
  • NICU visitation policies in the event the newborn requires admission to the NICU
  • Encouraging members to call ahead to the planned hospital if they are in labor and think they may have or have been diagnosed with COVID-19
• During outreach, TCHP will provide information to members for any additional resources (e.g., nutrition, housing behavioral health, financial, and value-added services) in their service areas to support pregnant members during this crisis.

How this impacts providers: For awareness, so providers are prepared to address topics with pregnant patients.

Next steps for providers: Providers should be aware, support the guidance from HHSC, and be prepared to communicate information to pregnant patient’s during this time.

Resources: Find COVID-19 resources for maternal and infant health at the following site:
https://www.tchmb.org/perinatal-covid19-resources

If you have any questions, please email Provider Network Management at: providerrelations@texaschildrens.org.

For access to all provider alerts, log into:
www.thecheckup.org or www.texaschildrenshealthplan.org/for-providers.