Title V Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant Program
The Title V Maternal and Child Block Grant is a Federal-State partnership that supports State efforts in improving the health of women, mothers, infants, children, including children with special health care needs, and adolescents.
In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt enacted the Social Security Act, which provided funding for the health of our nation’s mothers, children, and families through Title V. To this day, the Title V Block Grant remains the only Federal program that focuses on improving the health of all mothers and children. Through Title V, states receive funds annually from the Federal government to support special projects that target underserved populations in partnership with community-level organizations and inter-district agencies.
The U.S. Congress provides annual allotments toward Title V programs. The allotments are determined by a formula looking at the percentage of children in poverty in a state compared to the children in poverty in the nation. States also match every $4 of Federal Title V funding with at least $3 of state and/or local funding.
For additional information about the Title V Block Grant, please visit HRSA Maternal & Child Health.
Our Mission
The DC Title V program is committed to improving the health of the District’s maternal and child health population, including children and youth with special health care needs. The Agency’s Title V approach recognizes that a person’s health is impacted by: factors present prior to conception; poverty and racism, which profoundly affect psychosocial well-being and contribute to disparities; and social policies, which can allow or prevent families from leading healthy lives.
Our framework to improve MCH outcomes is based on the overarching goal to ensure every community understands its health risks and role in improving perinatal/MCH health outcomes. The DC Department of Health (DC Health) has identified seven core priorities that drive our programmatic efforts:
- Every teenage girl and woman in DC is in control of her reproductive health.
- Every pregnant woman receives patient-centered, high quality prenatal care beginning in the 1st trimester.
- Every healthcare provider has the tools and resources they need to provide quality care and manage complex social needs of women and infants.
- Every healthcare facility providing maternal and infant care has the tools and resources to practice evidence-based healthcare and to document Quality Improvement and Quality Assurance (QA) activities.
- Every newborn receives high-quality neonatal care in the hospital and outpatient setting.
- Every parent has the life skills and resources needed to nurture and provide for their family.
- Every infant and parent has a safe and healthy environment to thrive and receive the support they need to promote early childhood development and learning.
Title V funding is used to support community-based organizations, health care institutions, DC Health and other District agencies in implementing programs that fall under any of the five domains: Women/Maternal Health, Perinatal/Infant Health, Child Health, Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN), and Adolescent Health. Title V funded programs and partnerships aim to achieve improvements in the following five population health measures:
- well-woman visits
- breastfeeding
- increased access to mental health and grief and trauma-informed care
- healthy food access
- teen pregnancy
- bias and discrimination
- positive youth development
- early childhood developmental screenings
- medical home identification
- healthcare transition from pediatric to adult care
- preventive dental care visits
Application and Annual Report
Each year, DC Health is required to submit an annual report and application to the Federal government as an update on the previous year’s Title V-related activities and plans for the upcoming year toward achieving the agency’s Title V goals.
To view DC Health’s most recent annual report/application, please visit HRSA Maternal and Child Health: State Application/Annual Report and select “DC”.
*NEW* Needs Assessment