Pregnant women in Washington, D.C., without reliable access to transportation have been cashing in on a private, complimentary car ride to their many perinatal and postnatal appointments through virtual maternity care company Babyscripts.
Babyscripts is a virtual maternity care program that partners with healthcare providers to support women who are pregnant and postpartum. Babyscripts offers perinatal education, remote physiologic monitoring to identify risks like hypertension and preeclampsia, and mental health care services to support mothers.
Babyscripts partnered with ride-sharing app Lyft in April to offer free rides to and from perinatal and postpartum healthcare appointments to benefit the health of the mother. The program has been running in Washington, D.C., where Babyscripts is headquartered.
With an expected 10 to 15 doctor’s visits during an uncomplicated pregnancy, according to Geisinger Health, and several more visits to attend with a newborn, transportation-insecure women are likely to miss or skip perinatal and postpartum care.
“The data and the evidence is clear, which is, if patients show up to their prenatal appointments and postpartum appointments, quality will improve,” Anish Sebastian, CEO of Babyscripts, said.
Babyscripts is partnered with MedStar Health and George Washington University, and patients can get rides to any participating clinics for maternity care.
“At least in the urban setting, [some] patients don't have cars … So the only other option would be public transportation,” Sebastian said in an interview. “And if they had to make the conscious choice of like, I'm going to go into work and get my shift done, or, take a half a day or full day off, for what ends up being a 20-minute appointment. You can see how this is one of those things that's going to make it easier for them to show.”
In the first six months of its partnership with Lyft, Babyscripts has provided 700 rides to 117 unique riders. Patients took an average of six rides costing $29 each and have saved an average of $173 on transportation costs, which can then be used for other necessities like diapers or baby food.
Roughly 70% of Babyscripts patients, 154 individuals, have identified themselves as transportation-insecure and claimed the benefit.
Washington, D.C., has significantly worse maternal health outcomes than the national average. In D.C., roughly 30 out of 100,000 women die in childbirth, where the national average is 23 deaths per 100,000 births. Black women represent 90% of birth-related deaths in the District.
Providers tell Babyscripts that they are seeing more patients return for follow-up visits. "For our providers ... it's great because for them, it's a great additional benefit to share with the patients," Sebastian said. "They're seeing patients come back that they normally would not have. So they're able to deliver the care and focus on what they need to do."
Sebastian said that the D.C. program will continue operating past the initial pilot phase. The company has also talked to Lyft about expanding to other U.S. cities. Babyscripts currently operates in 28 states.