The Rockbridge Area Health Center and the Central Shenandoah Health District announced a partnership that will bring Title X Family Planning services to the Health Center.
Title X is a federal grant program whose mission is to provide quality family planning and reproductive health services to income-eligible and uninsured patients. The Virginia Department of Health is a Title X grant recipient, and Title X family planning services have traditionally been available at local health departments. CSHD has been working with RAHC over the past year to begin providing these services at the Health Center, beginning April 1, 2017.
“The opportunities for this partnership are exciting” said Dr. Laura Kornegay, MD, MPH, health director for the Central Shenandoah Health District. “We look forward to expanding the range of primary care services available to our family planning patients. With this partnership, we will be able to meet more of the medical needs of income-eligible individuals in the community and bolster the missions of both organizations to provide high quality health care for all who walk through our doors.”
The services, eligibility criteria and the sliding scale for Title X services will remain the same, despite the change in location of services. The family planning teams at both the local health department and the Health Center have been working hard to ensure a seamless transition of services between the locations. “We look forward to joining with RAHC to enhance and expand services in the Rockbridge area,” said Dr. Kornegay.
Suzanne Sheridan, executive director of RAHC notes that “this decision is well aligned with the current health care environment. We need to work together to provide cost-efficient, coordinated and comprehensive medical care to meet the health needs of our patients. Combining the health department’s years of family planning expertise with our well-established primary care, pediatric, dental and behavioral health services will enable patients to receive a broader range of quality services and will allow us to expand clinical services in the area.”
RAHC is expanding its capacity to provide women’s health services in the Rockbridge area, and becoming a provider for Title X family planning services is part of this process. The Health Center is currently able to provide women’s health services for women of all ages, and they are participating providers with most commercial insurance plans, as well as Medicare and Medicaid. Plans are underway to establish a maternity program that will provide comprehensive pre-natal care for pregnant women.
The health department and the Health Center recently mailed letters to current family planning patients making them aware of the upcoming change in location for services. To continue services at RAHC, patients should call 464-8700 and ask to speak to the family planning coordinator. Patients may also request transfer of their records to another provider by contacting the Lexington Health Department at 463-3185.
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