CareSource Georgia Collaborates with GaFCP to Improve Maternal and Infant Health in Rural Georgia

July 23, 2025 Print This Post

CareSource Georgia collaborates with Georgia Family Connection Partnership on pilot project

Pregnant and postpartum mothers and their infants, who live in rural areas where there’s limited access to care, are at greater risk for poor health outcomes.

Maternal mortality rates in rural Georgia are up to 2.5 times higher than in urban areas, according to The American Surgeon journal. And the March of Dimes reports that in maternity care deserts—which make up 42% of the state—women must travel twice as far to reach the nearest obstetric hospital to find essential maternity resources.

“Communities thrive when families are healthy,” said Georgia Family Connection Partnership (GaFCP) Executive Director Gaye Smith. “Georgia’s 10.2% low-birthweight rate is well above the national rate of 8.6%, which is already higher than the rate for most developed nations. This matters because low birthweight is the strongest predictor of infant mortality and provides insight into the state of women’s overall health.”

GaFCP and CareSource Georgia, a nonprofit managed care organization, have teamed up to close these gaps and improve maternal and infant health outcomes in rural Georgia through technology-driven engagement and community-based collaboration.

CareSource awarded GaFCP a $100,000 grant to launch Creating Connections to Improve Maternal and Infant Health, a pilot project designed to improve maternal, infant, and neonatal mortality—particularly for women and infants of color.

“This partnership will leverage technology and community engagement to improve maternal and infant health outcomes in rural Georgia,” said Taura White, associate vice president for CareSource Georgia. “Because access to care can be limited in rural areas, the goal is to embed GoMo Health as a virtual engagement hub—connective tissue—to support pregnant and postpartum members and their infants in rural Georgia. We hope to provide a framework where AI science can be leveraged to engage more rural communities.”

GoMo, a science-based patient and consumer engagement company, leverages human-centered science and advanced technology to deliver personalized, real-time support for members, as well as their providers and care partners, that support adherence, resilience, and well-being.

There are 12 Georgia Family Connection Collaboratives:

1.    Butts County Life Enrichment Team

2.    Dawson County Family Connection

3.    Jefferson County Community Ships for Youth

4.    Lanier County Family Connection

5.    Liberty County Family Connection

6.    Lowndes/Valdosta Commission for Children & Youth

7.    McIntosh County Family Connection

8.    Meriwether County Family Connection

9.    Oglethorpe County Family Connection

10. Rockdale Coalition for Children and Families

11. Troup Family Connection Authority

12. Twiggs County Family Connection

embedding the GoMo Health platform to create a virtual engagement hub that coordinates health communication and patient support among CareSource members, care teams, and local community organizations. Eight counties will include participants who are already using remote patient monitoring for gestational hypertension and diabetes. Connected monitoring devices will be integrated into the GoMo Health platform to create a seamless, personalized care experience.

“Improving health outcomes requires us to connect with individuals in their own environments, both geographically and in terms of their engagement with care,” said Nguyen, MD, CareSource Georgia chief medical officer. “By combining digital outreach with trusted community connections, we remove traditional barriers to care for families in real time. We believe this connected and responsive model will support healthier moms and babies, especially in communities with limited access to resources.”

Georgia Family Connection is engaged in this work to:

• increase access to physical and mental health care for women and families;
• increase social connections for women and families as a means of supporting their physical and mental health;
• improve access to treatment for women with substance use disorders;
• increase families’ understanding of seeking health care and social connections, and other healthy behaviors;
• decrease the rate of hospitalization due to untreated chronic diseases in women;
• decrease the rate of low-birthweight and preterm births; and
• decrease maternal mortality.

Together, CareSource and GaFCP aim to create a replicable model that reduces emergency department visits and hospital stays while promoting better pregnancies, healthier births and stronger communities across rural Georgia.

“CareSource’s support and vision have been essential in bringing this partnership to life,” said Smith. “Combining the power of technology with the strength of local relationships has better equipped us to improve maternal and infant health in rural Georgia and statewide.”

Contact:
Bill Valladares
GaFCP Communications Director
404-739-0043
william@gafcp.org

Vicki McDonald
CareSource Media Relations Director
216-502-6395
Vicki.McDonald@caresource.com

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About CareSource Georgia
CareSource is a nonprofit, managed care organization making health care accessible to 430,000 Georgians. The organization offers comprehensive health insurance plans including Medicaid, Health Insurance Marketplace, and Medicare to improve its members’ health and well-being. As a mission-driven organization, CareSource is transforming health care with innovative programs that address social determinants of health, prevention, and access to care. Visit caresource.com/ga/plans or follow CareSource on X, LinkedIn, and Facebook.