Healthy Start Coalition of Sarasota County
  • ABOUT
    • Mission & History
    • Our Team
    • Volunteer Executive Board
    • Annual Reports
    • Client Success Stories
    • FAQ
    • Contact
  • PROGRAMS
    • Healthy Start
    • Connect
    • Save My Life
    • MomCare
    • Fetal & Infant Mortality Review
  • COMMUNITY ACTION
    • Addiction Support and Pregnancy (ASAP)
    • Breastfeeding Advocates of Sarasota County
    • Breastfeeding Friendly Sarasota Project
    • Breastfeeding Peer Counselors
    • Clean Start
    • IMPLICIT: Interconception Care Model for Vulnerable Populations in Sarasota County
    • Pump Up Sarasota
    • Safe Sleep Sarasota Initiative
    • Substance Exposed Newborn Prevention & Protection
  • FOR MOMS
    • Can Healthy Start Help You?
    • Breastfeeding Support & Resources
    • Clean Start – Protecting Your Baby from Drugs and Alcohol
    • Family Planning
    • Getting Healthy Before You Get Pregnant
    • Help to Quit Smoking
    • Hurricane & Disaster Preparedness
    • Safe Sleep for Your Baby
    • Text4Baby
    • Think 39 Weeks!
    • Zika and Pregnancy
  • FOR PROVIDERS
    • Prenatal Risk Screen
    • Infant Risk Screen
    • Provider Education & Resources
    • Your Community Liaison
  • EVENTS
    • An Evening for Healthy Start 2023
      13th Annual Fundraiser
    • Past Events
      • 2022 Breakfast of Champions
      • Run Baby Run! 5k
      • An Evening for Healthy Start 2022
      • Fourth Annual Regional Summit 2022
      • Free Virtual Webinar: Multiple Layers of COVID-19 From Birth to Grief
      • 2021 Parenting Series
        • 2021 Parenting Series – The Sleepy Tot
        • 2021 Parenting Series – COVID 19 Vaccination
        • 2021 Parenting Series – HypnoBirthing
        • 2021 Parenting Series – Resilient Retreat
        • 2021 Parenting Series – Potty Training
        • 2021 Parenting Series – Sound Beginnings
        • 2021 Parenting Series – Childhood Stress
      • 2020 Regional Summit Lunch and Learn Series
      • An Evening for Healthy Start 2020
      • “Giving Sarasota a Healthy Start” Luncheon 2020
      • North Port Community Baby Shower & Preschool Expo
      • Sarasota Community Baby Shower
      • SECOND REGIONAL SUMMIT: Substance Use Disorder in the Pregnant Patient and Substance Exposed Neonate
      • (Virtual) Breakfast of Champions 2020
  • DONATE
    • Donate
    • Volunteer
    • Wishlist
    • Amazon Smile
    • Goodshop
  • ABOUT
    • Mission & History
    • Our Team
    • Volunteer Executive Board
    • Annual Reports
    • Client Success Stories
    • FAQ
    • Contact
  • PROGRAMS
    • Healthy Start
    • Connect
    • Save My Life
    • MomCare
    • Fetal & Infant Mortality Review
  • COMMUNITY ACTION
    • Addiction Support and Pregnancy (ASAP)
    • Breastfeeding Advocates of Sarasota County
    • Breastfeeding Friendly Sarasota Project
    • Breastfeeding Peer Counselors
    • Clean Start
    • IMPLICIT: Interconception Care Model for Vulnerable Populations in Sarasota County
    • Pump Up Sarasota
    • Safe Sleep Sarasota Initiative
    • Substance Exposed Newborn Prevention & Protection
  • FOR MOMS
    • Can Healthy Start Help You?
    • Breastfeeding Support & Resources
    • Clean Start – Protecting Your Baby from Drugs and Alcohol
    • Family Planning
    • Getting Healthy Before You Get Pregnant
    • Help to Quit Smoking
    • Hurricane & Disaster Preparedness
    • Safe Sleep for Your Baby
    • Text4Baby
    • Think 39 Weeks!
    • Zika and Pregnancy
  • FOR PROVIDERS
    • Prenatal Risk Screen
    • Infant Risk Screen
    • Provider Education & Resources
    • Your Community Liaison
  • EVENTS
    • An Evening for Healthy Start 2023
      13th Annual Fundraiser
    • Past Events
      • 2022 Breakfast of Champions
      • Run Baby Run! 5k
      • An Evening for Healthy Start 2022
      • Fourth Annual Regional Summit 2022
      • Free Virtual Webinar: Multiple Layers of COVID-19 From Birth to Grief
      • 2021 Parenting Series
        • 2021 Parenting Series – The Sleepy Tot
        • 2021 Parenting Series – COVID 19 Vaccination
        • 2021 Parenting Series – HypnoBirthing
        • 2021 Parenting Series – Resilient Retreat
        • 2021 Parenting Series – Potty Training
        • 2021 Parenting Series – Sound Beginnings
        • 2021 Parenting Series – Childhood Stress
      • 2020 Regional Summit Lunch and Learn Series
      • An Evening for Healthy Start 2020
      • “Giving Sarasota a Healthy Start” Luncheon 2020
      • North Port Community Baby Shower & Preschool Expo
      • Sarasota Community Baby Shower
      • SECOND REGIONAL SUMMIT: Substance Use Disorder in the Pregnant Patient and Substance Exposed Neonate
      • (Virtual) Breakfast of Champions 2020
  • DONATE
    • Donate
    • Volunteer
    • Wishlist
    • Amazon Smile
    • Goodshop

Sample Letter for Contacting Legislators- 2

The Honorable (Full Name)

Florida State Legislature

Dear Senator (Last Name),
Thank you for your dedication during this challenging time for so many. We know you have some difficult choices to make.

We are writing to give you some insight and to express our concerns with the proposal to eliminate funding for the thirty-one Healthy Start Coalitions across the state of Florida and to transfer Healthy Start services to county health departments.

Local Healthy Start Coalitions provide a cost-effective system of care for all pregnant Florida women and infants throughout the entire state through a variety of means.  We have public and private provider networks in place to ensure pregnant women in all 67 counties have access to prenatal care.  Less than 63% of county health departments actually provide prenatal care themselves.  The loss of Healthy Start Coalitions would create large gaps in parts of the state where pregnant women would be unable to have prenatal care. County health departments ordinarily do not have the capabilities to secure private care arrangements outside of their own entities or across county lines.

Healthy Start Coalitions leverage additional dollars in their catchment areas to augment not only prenatal care, but other specialized direct services for women who are at high risk of prematurity, low birth weight, fetal or infant death.  In 2008, the Coalitions leveraged $32 million to expand community resources.  It is unlikely county health departments have the ability to orchestrate such an expansion to serve the needs of this population. As private, nonprofit organizations, Healthy Start Coalition oversight and administration is performed at a much lower cost. Overhead costs of county health departments are more than double the average rate of local coalitions. It’s the perfect example of “less government.”

In addition, Coalitions provide on-going education of maternal-child health professionals and the public, to assure the highest standards of prenatal and infant care are met and prevention messages are disseminated. Saves lives and dollars…maintain Healthy Start Coalitions and their community systems of care.
Thank you very much for your help!

Sincerely,

Your name

Your address

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About

“Our Mission is to Improve the Health and Well-being of Pregnant Women, Infants, and Young Children in Sarasota County.”

WHO WE ARE

  • OUR TEAM
  • VOLUNTEER EXECUTIVE BOARD
  • BLOG
  • CONTACT
  • CALENDAR OF EVENTS

WHAT WE DO

  • OUR MISSION
  • OUR PROGRAMS
  • EVENTS
  • FAQ
  • PRESS RELEASES

OUR MISSION

“Our Mission is to Improve the Health and Well-being of Pregnant Women, Infants, and Young Children in Sarasota County.”

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© 2017 The Healthy Start Coalition of Sarasota County, Inc. Designed by Ciera Coleman. Photography by Peter Acker.