Magnolia Health Initiative Helps Improve Transition for Foster Care Children

JACKSON, Miss., June 21, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A new Foster Care initiative launched by Magnolia Health, a leading Mississippi-based Coordinated Care Organization, has improved the ease of transition for children in Foster Care.

In 2017, Magnolia Health identified that children in the Mississippi Department of Child Protective Services Foster Care program often times do not have anything to call their own or place their belongings in. To help, Magnolia Health decided to develop the Comfort To-Go Bag initiative for these children. In 2017, Magnolia Health distributed 200 bags to children and 50 bags to infants. Already in 2018, the company has delivered 100 bags to children and 25 bags to infants across the state of Mississippi.

Magnolia Health's Comfort To-Go bags are developed to help meet the needs of different age groups. For older children, the duffle bags include a fleece blanket, shampoo or body wash, educational books, a comb, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. For infants, a smaller backpack is used that includes a baby blanket, cup/bowl set, wipes, baby wash, lotion, and a teddy bear.

In addition to providing the bags to Foster Care children, Magnolia Health also provides training each year for the Mississippi Department of Child Protective Services. Magnolia Health staff visits each region of the state to provide information on how Magnolia can be contacted and the services they provide. They also train the CPS staff on how to utilize the Comfort bags when a child is in their custody.

"These bags are great," said a Marion County Child Protective Services Supervisor. "You just do not know what it is like to take a child into custody in the middle of the night and not have anything for them. This gives them something to get started and have a bag for personal care items to call their own. Thank you so much for this."

Magnolia Health sponsors this initiative and purchases the bags, and the bags are filled through employee fundraisers where all proceeds go to the needed items for their Comfort To-Go Bags.

About Magnolia Health

Magnolia Health is a long-term solution to help the state of Mississippi enhance care for Medicaid and CHIP recipients, while most effectively managing taxpayer dollars. A physician-driven, Mississippi-based Coordinated Care Organization (CCO), Magnolia is backed by its parent company, Centene Corporation (Centene). Centene has more than 30 years of experience in Medicaid, CHIP and other government-funded programs such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and long-term care. For more information about Magnolia, visit www.magnoliahealthplan.com.

SOURCE Magnolia Health

Related Links

https://www.magnoliahealthplan.com