Dear Communities and Partners,



It’s hard to believe another year is already here. We hope you found rest and ease over the holiday season. 

I’ve continued reflecting on all that is ahead for our team, and for many of you as well, in the coming year. It will be busy. It will be challenging at times. But it will also bring many opportunities for us to engage in meaningful ways. 

Our team is moving along in our needs assessment, which we share more about in the MCH quarterly highlight section. We look forward to connecting with many partners, communities, and families as we go through the assessment process.

To help guide our engagement efforts, in the needs assessment, and our work generally, we’ve worked with Family Leaders and Young Adult Council Members over the last several months to develop a guiding document. This details our commitment to engagement and provides core principles and practices to guide those efforts. We’re grateful to the partners who worked with us to develop a meaningful tool to support our team.

This newsletter provides additional highlights, announcements/reminders, and program updates – to include funding and hiring opportunities.  

You can always reach me at [email protected]. 

Feliciana Turner

Maternal and Child Health Unit Manager

Title V Director

MCH Quarterly Highlights

MCH Needs Assessment Underway



Our unit, in partnership with MCH Epidemiology, are working toward a comprehensive, statewide needs assessment. This assessment is a requirement of our Title V Maternal and Child Health Block Grant and will help identify priorities to guide our work for 2026-2030. 

Here’s a look at where we’re at and where we’re going.

Where we’re at:

As in past assessments, we will look at a number measures related to health outcomes across the MCH populations. New to our framework this year, we are also looking at data across social and economic factors that influence health as well. The MCH Epidemiologists are assessing the data and developing snapshots.

Where we’re going:

While the data and measures are an important part of our assessment, we want to couple the data with the perspectives of partners, communities, and families so we have a more complete picture to guide priority selection.

Starting this month, we’ll begin outreach and engagement efforts with existing partners and state and community organizations who can help us learn about needs and assets. From there, we will enlist support to conduct broader community and family engagement so we can hear directly the experiences, perspectives, and ideas that can inform and shape our understanding and priorities. 

More updates will follow in each of our newsletters throughout the year.

Medicaid Unwind



Medicaid Unwinding Continues

Wyoming Medicaid’s process to review client eligibility is still underway. Medicaid enrollees can update their contact information online at www.wesystem.wyo.gov or by calling 1-855-294-2127. Renewal notices are being sent to a certain percentage of current enrollees each month. Not all clients receive their renewal notices at the same time. 

Renewals can be completed online at www.wesystem.wyo.gov/, over the phone with the Customer Service Center at 1-855-294-2127 or via a hard copy application. Hard copy applications can be downloaded at health.wyo.gov/healthcarefin/apply/ and returned to the Customer Service Center via mail, email or fax. Contact information is listed on page 10 of the application.

If an enrollee's benefits close, the case can be reopened to the date of coverage loss if they still qualify and turn in a renewal form and any missing documentation within 90 days. For most cases, the only items needed are the completed renewal and income verification for the last 30 days.

If there are questions about the status of a renewal or what documents are still needed, families should contact the WDH Customer Service Center at 1-855-294-2127.

It is important to know that children may remain eligible, even if parents or others in the household are not. And those who no longer qualify for Medicaid can qualify for special enrollment in the Health Insurance Marketplace. We want families to know about this process and be able to navigate it. Free assistance is available from Enroll Wyoming by calling 211 or visiting enrollwyo.org.

More information about Wyoming Medicaid can be found online at health.wyo.gov/healthcarefin/medicaid/. 

Syphilis Testing is Essential for All Pregnant Women



There are often no symptoms associated with syphilis infection. Untreated syphilis can cause major health issues including death in both patients and unborn children. 

Up to 40% of babies born to women with untreated syphilis may be stillborn, or die from the infection as a newborn. This is preventable with appropriate testing and treatment. 

Providers should test all pregnant women for syphilis as soon as possible after pregnancy is confirmed. Repeat testing should be provided to pregnant women throughout the duration of the pregnancy if any of the following apply to the patient or their partner(s):

• Patient or partner have other sexual partners
• Use of injection or intranasal drugs
• Unprofessional or homemade tattoo(s) or piercing(s)

Screening recommendations for pregnant women and testing algorithms can be found at https://health.wyo.gov/.../health-professional-resources/.

The Communicable Disease Unit currently recommends testing all sexually active individuals for syphilis. Frequency of testing is based on the individual risk of each patient. In general, test two weeks after each new partner (or exposure) or every 1-3 months for frequent partners or exposures. Having sex without a condom, multiple sex partners, anonymous sex partners or drug use are risks connected with the recent increase in syphilis. Patients who are a contact to syphilis may initially test negative however there are some cases where treatment may be indicated. Wyoming’s specific STI testing recommendations are based on risk and can be found online at https://health.wyo.gov/publichealth/communicable-disease-unit/sexually-transmitted-disease/health-professional-resources/.

To find low or no-cost testing sites in Wyoming or at-home testing options go to www.KnoWyo.org.

Family Resource Center Initiative Update

The Family Resource Center project management and implementation is led by the Wyoming Children’s Trust Fund. The project contact is Sara Serelson ([email protected]). 

Additional information including recent webinars and grant opportunities can be found at: https://pcawy.org/frc-collective

WIC Cash Value Benefit Changes



Repost from the December 2023 WIC Newsletter

Cash Value Benefits (CVB) are an important component of the WIC program. These benefits allow WIC participants to purchase fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables of their choice.

Originally, the monthly CVB amount was $9 for children and $11 for women. However, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency legislation was enacted to increase these benefits. Currently, the cash value is $26 for children and $47 for pregnant and postpartum women & $52 for primarily breastfeeding women. These values are subject to change based on future legislation.

This increase will help WIC participants purchase more fresh fruits and vegetables.

2024 ACIP recommended immunization schedules now available

Repost from the December 2023 Immunization Newsletter

by Heidi Gurov, RN - Nurse Consultant

On November 16, 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the 2024 ACIP Recommended Immunization Schedules. Please begin using these schedules immediately.

• Healthcare Provider Schedules page
• Recommended Child and Adolescent Immunization Schedule for ages 18 years or younger
• Recommended Adult Immunization Schedule for ages 19 years or older
• Summary of changes to the schedules

For more information please reach out to Wyoming Department of Health Immunization Unit Nurse Consultant Heidi Gurov at [email protected] or 307-777-8981.

Wyoming Public Health Association (WPHA) Seeking Input



The WPHA serves public health professionals across the state, connecting them to development and networking opportunities. They are working on a strategic plan to guide their work, and are interested in your perspective. They are looking for current, past, and potential member feedback. This short survey will help guide their strategic focus and how they serve the Wyoming public health workforce going forward.

Click here to complete the survey

New Chronic Disease & MCH Epidemiology Unit New Logo

The Chronic Disease & MCH Epidemiology Unit recently obtained a new logo.  This logo, along with other information from the MCH Epidemiology Program can be found on our website.

PRAMS

The Wyoming PRAMS Team recently updated the Wyoming PRAMS Dashboard with 2021 data. During this update, improvements to the race and insurance variables were also made. We invite everyone to take a look at the new data. Additionally, the Annual Wyoming PRAMS Steering Committee Meeting was held in December 2023, at which the newly developed Wyoming PRAMS logo and rebranding standards, planned to be rolled out completely in 2024 were discussed, along with the plan to produce quarterly snapshots of Wyoming PRAMS data starting in 2024. If you would like to learn more about Wyoming PRAMS or view the new logo, please visit our website. If you would like to be involved in the Wyoming PRAMS Steering Committee, or have any questions about Wyoming PRAMS, including the rebranding or the dashboard update, please reach out at [email protected]. 

MCH Program Updates

Youth and Young Adult Health Program

The Youth and Young Adult Health Program (YAYAHP) is wrapping up a curriculum review for the Personal Responsibility Education Program and needs assessments for the Pediatric Mental Health Care Access grant project. We’re looking forward to using this information to move to the next phase for both grants in the spring of 2024.

Women and Infant Health Program



The Women and Infant Health Program (WIHP) is excited to announce the 2024 Title V Funding Proposal Request for Applications. This is our second year offering this opportunity after the success of last year. Do you have an idea for a project or have an already existing project that needs strengthening? If it aligns with WIHP priority areas of Infant Safe Sleep, Women’s Annual Visits, or Tobacco Cessation During Pregnancy or Postpartum, please submit an application. 

The Women and Infant Health Program was recently awarded funding to strengthen the Wyoming side of the UT-WY Maternal Mortality Review Committee. Aside from managing and implementing the MMRC WIHP is using some of the funding on a Request for Application calling for a Family Interviewer, an Abstractor, and an organization to manage a MMRC focused Community Action Team. You can apply for one or multiple options.

Are you a recent graduate or retiree that wants to improve maternal and infant health outcomes in the state? Are you skilled at managing a group and engaging the right people to make a difference? The Wyoming Perinatal Quality Collaborative is looking for a Coordinator, click here for more information such as salary and duties. 

Children and Youth with Special Healthcare Needs (CYSHCN) Program



In the new year, the Child Health Program will be releasing a Request For Application (RFA) pertaining to physical activity for children ages 1-11. Please be on the lookout for that announcement on our funding opportunities website https://health.wyo.gov/publichealth/mch/mch-funding-opportunities/.