Maternal Mental Health and Pregnancy Loss Programs

Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan has established a Maternal Mental Health Program and a Pregnancy Loss Program that offer resources to Blue Shield Promise network practitioners who are providing prenatal or postpartum care to our Medi-Cal plan members.

In addition to offering support, the Maternal Mental Health program requires compliance with California law, which includes a mandate that a licensed health care practitioner who provides prenatal or postpartum care for a patient must ensure the patient is offered a screening, or is appropriately screened, for any type of mental health conditions that may be occurring. 

In accordance with the law, Blue Shield Promise requires all participating network practitioners, as well as delegated entities that contract with individual practitioners who provide prenatal or postpartum care, to comply with those requirements. More information about program requirements is available in our Maternal Mental Health Program Description (PDF, 387 KB).
 

How to screen perinatal patients for depression

Blue Shield Promise has created a simple clinical that will support healthcare providers in integrating and conducting perinatal mental health screenings and linking Blue Shield Promise members to follow-up care.

 Review Maternal Mental Health Screening Pathways (PDF, 254 KB)

Providers of prenatal and postpartum care for Medi-Cal members may submit claims for reimbursement twice per year for each pregnant or postpartum member: one claim when the member has been diagnosed as pregnant, and one claim during the member’s postpartum period.

To view the fee schedule, including reimbursement rates for depression screenings, please log in to Provider Connection and select the Claims tab to access the fee schedule.
 

Maternal mental health screening tools

All practitioners must use an evidence-based screening tool when providing a mental health screening, and the screening must be performed in conjunction with and on the same date as an outpatient visit.

Blue Shield Promise's preferred maternal mental health screening tool is the Edinburgh Perinatal Depression Scale (PDF, 137 KB). Other tools are also available:

  List of approved screening tools (PDF, 81 KB)
 

Provider actions after completion of the maternal mental health screening

If the member’s screening indicates that follow-up is needed, please call the numbers below to obtain information about mental health services:

 Los Angeles County phone: (855) 765-9701, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday
 San Diego County phone: (855) 321-2211, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday

Support after pregnancy loss or abortion

Each person reacts to the end of a pregnancy in their own way. Members may experience unimaginable pain and grief. They may also feel relief, numbness, or a sense of being alone.

If a member has experienced a pregnancy loss or abortion recently, resources can be obtained from our Pregnancy Loss web page.

Health education materials for perinatal members

To support pregnant and postpartum members, Blue Shield Promise has developed educational brochures on mental health, breastfeeding, and more. You may print and/or share these materials with members.