| |
| Sept. 3, 2015 BCBSOK and Oklahoma Health Care Authority Work Together to Address Infant Mortality
In an effort to bring awareness to the disparities between the African-American community and other ethnic groups, BCBSOK and the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA) have collaborated in a focused awareness campaign targeting teenage and young adult African-American females and males. BCBSOK and the OHCA selected four main dangers of IMR as message topics: early delivery, safe sleep, breastfeeding and tobacco cessation. The campaign includes public service announcements on the radio along with print and Web ads and social media. Media outlets include The Black Chronicle newspaper, along with Oklahoma City radio stations 1140AM, 92,1FM, 103.5FM and 105.3FM in Tulsa. Each station has shared the messages on their social media pages. The Oklahoma City and Tulsa radio stations were selected for their high rates of teenage and young adult African-American listeners. The OHCA supported the campaign throughout April and May, promoting joint messages about dangers of early delivery and safe sleep. BCBSOK is supporting the campaign in August and September and the joint messages will promote breastfeeding and tobacco cessation.
| |
In September 2014, the Oklahoma State Department of Health announced that the state’s 2013 Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) hit a historic low of 7.6 deaths per 1,000 live births. Although the state’s IMR has improved overall, there is still a wide gap between the African-American communities and other ethnic groups. In 2013, the IMR among African-American babies in Oklahoma was 14.3 deaths per 1,000 live births, almost twice as high as the rate among other ethnicities.