The Baltimore City Health Department (BCHD) invites proposals from qualified consultants to complete an expansion of the electronic Prenatal Risk Assessment (ePRA) pilot project to Baltimore and Anne Arundel Counties.

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Care coordination during pregnancy improves maternal and infant health outcomes and reduces maternal and infant mortality. It is especially critical for mothers with psychosocial risks, including substance use disorder. The PRA is key to connecting pregnant women to care coordination services. Maryland Medicaid mandates that the form is completed for every Medicaid and Medicaid-eligible patient during the first prenatal visit. Submitting the form triggers a series of triaging events, both at Healthcare Access Maryland, which serves as the Administrative Care Coordination Unit (ACCU) for Baltimore City providing care coordination to pregnant and postpartum women and infants, and at the patient’s managed care organization (MCO), which monitors the care plan and may offer services like high-risk OB case management. However, the PRA submission rate is only approximately 65%. This results in missed opportunities for linkages to services and supports that improve health and prevent infant mortality. Feedback from prenatal clinic staff has noted that the process to complete the PRA is cumbersome as it is paper-based.

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The ePRA pilot project in Baltimore City has made the PRA an electronic document and integrated it into the prenatal care provider’s electronic health record. The goal of this initiative is to expand the ePRA pilot project to the surrounding counties, ultimately creating a set of tools for any Maryland county to adopt the ePRA and create efficiencies, increasing the PRA submission rate and improving linkages to services for pregnant women.

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The consultant will provide services between April 2021 and June 2021, with the possibility of second- and third-year extensions.