(1) The Department of Health shall cooperate with localities which wish to establish prenatal and infant health care coalitions, and shall acknowledge and incorporate, if appropriate, existing community children’s services organizations, pursuant to this section within the resources allocated. The purpose of this program is to establish a partnership among the private sector, the public sector, state government, local government, community alliances, and maternal and child health care providers, for the provision of coordinated community-based prenatal and infant health care. The prenatal and infant health care coalitions must work in a coordinated, nonduplicative manner with local health planning councils established pursuant to s. 408.033. (2) Each prenatal and infant health care coalition shall develop, in coordination with the Department of Health, a plan which shall include at a minimum provision to:(a) Perform community assessments, using the Planned Approach to Community Health (PATCH) process, to identify the local need for comprehensive preventive and primary prenatal and infant health care. These assessments shall be used to:1. Determine the priority target groups for receipt of care.
2. Determine outcome performance objectives jointly with the department.
3. Identify potential local providers of services.
4. Determine the type of services required to serve the identified priority target groups.
5. Identify the unmet need for services for the identified priority target groups.
(b) Design a prenatal and infant health care services delivery plan which is consistent with local community objectives and this section.
(c) Solicit and select local service providers based on reliability and availability, and define the role of each in the services delivery plan.
(d) Determine the allocation of available federal, state, and local resources to prenatal and infant health care providers.
(e) Review, monitor, and advise the department concerning the performance of the services delivery system, and make any necessary annual adjustments in the design of the delivery system, the provider composition, the targeting of services, and other factors necessary for achieving projected outcomes.
(f) Build broad-based community support.
(3) Supervision of the prenatal and infant health care coalitions is the responsibility of the department. The department shall:(a) Assist in the formation and development of the coalitions.
(b) Define the core services package so that it is consistent with the prenatal and infant health care services delivery plan.
(c) Provide data and technical assistance.
(d) Assure implementation of a quality management system within the provider coalition.
(e) Define statewide, uniform eligibility and fee schedules.
(f) Evaluate provider performance based on outcome measures established by the prenatal and infant health care coalition and the department.
(4) In those communities which do not elect to establish a prenatal and infant health care coalition, the Department of Health is responsible for all of the functions delegated to the coalitions in this section.
(5) The membership of each prenatal and infant health care coalition shall represent health care providers, the recipient community, and the community at large; shall represent the racial, ethnic, and gender composition of the community; and shall include at least the following:(a) Consumers of family planning, primary care, or prenatal care services, at least two of whom are low-income or Medicaid eligible.
(b) Health care providers, including:1. County health departments.
2. Migrant and community health centers.
3. Hospitals.
4. Local medical societies.
5. Local health planning organizations.
(c) Local health advocacy interest groups and community organizations.
(d) County and municipal governments.
(e) Social service organizations.
(f) Local education communities.
(6) Prenatal and infant health care coalitions may be established for single counties or for services delivery catchment areas. A prenatal and infant health care coalition shall be initiated at the local level on a voluntary basis. Once a coalition has been organized locally and includes the membership specified in subsection (5), the coalition must submit a list of its members to the State Surgeon General to carry out the responsibilities outlined in this section.
(7) Effective January 1, 1992, the Department of Health shall provide up to $150,000 to each prenatal and infant health care coalition that petitions for recognition, meets the membership criteria, demonstrates the commitment of all the designated members to participate in the coalition, and provides a local cash or in-kind contribution match of 25 percent of the costs of the coalition. An in-kind contribution match may be in the form of staff time, office facilities, or supplies or other materials necessary for the functioning of the coalition.
(8) Local prenatal and infant health care coalitions may hire staff or contract for independent staffing and support to enable them to carry out the objectives of this section. Staff shall have knowledge and expertise in community health and related resources and planning, grant writing, public information and communication techniques, organizational development, and data compilation and analysis.
(9) Local prenatal and infant health care coalitions shall incorporate as not-for-profit corporations for the purpose of seeking and receiving grants from federal, state, and local government and other contributors. However, a coalition need not be designated as a tax-exempt organization under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The administrative services organization representing all Healthy Start Coalitions under s. 409.975(4) may use any method of telecommunication to conduct meetings for any authorized function, provided that the public is given proper notice of and reasonable access to the meeting. (10) The Department of Health shall adopt rules necessary to administer this section, including rules defining acceptable “in-kind” contributions and rules providing definitions of terms, coalition responsibilities, coalition operations and standards, and conditions for establishing and approving a coalition. A coalition may not be a direct provider of prenatal and infant-care services.
