AmeriHealth Mercy Medicaid - Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
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Pennsylvania Health Plan Medicaid - Keystone Mercy Health Plan Pennsylvania Health Plan Medicaid - AmeriHealth Mercy Health Plan

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Medicaid, Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, AmeriHealth, AmeriHealth Mercy, Health, Plan, Members, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), AmeriHealth Mercy Health Plan, Perform Rx, Providers, Healthcare, Medical Assistance, Drug Formulary, Preferred Drug List, Covered Drugs, Provider List, Hospital List, Enroll, Enrollment, Premiums, Coinsurance, Deductable, Coverage Gap, Eligibility, Co-insurance, Copay/copayment, Emergency care, Generic drugs, Medically necessary services, Over the Counter (OTC) Drugs, Practitioner, Primary Care Provider (PCP), Urgent care, Special Needs Plan, SOBRA - Poverty level pregnant women and children, TANF - Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, SSI without Medicare - Individuals who are medically needy, aged, blind and disabled, SSI with Medicare - Individuals receiving Supplemental Security Income and Medicare benefits, CHIP - Children of families eligible for Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Eligibility for CHIP is based on the family's income, Foster Care - Children placed in out-of-home care by the state of Pennsylvania, Presumptive Eligibility - Temporary benefits for expectant mothers, Welfare, Medical Assistance

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Adams, Berks, Carbon, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Monroe, Northampton, Perry, Pike, York, Pennsylvania Hospitals GETTYSBURG HOSPITAL READING HOSPITAL AND MEDICAL CENTER SAINT JOSEPH MEDICAL CENTER GNADEN HUETTEN MEMORIAL HOSPITAL PALMERTON HOSPITAL CARLISLE REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER HOLY SPIRIT HOSPITAL ODYSSEY HEALTHCARE OF ALLENTOWN PINNACLE HEALTH SYSTEMS HERSHEY MEDICAL CENTER PINNACLE HEALTH SYSTEMS CHAMBERSBURG HOSPITAL WAYNESBORO HOSPITAL COMMUNITY MEDICAL CENTER MERCY HOSPITAL SCRANTON MOSES TAYLOR HOSPITAL EPHRATA CHF CLINIC EPHRATA COMMUNITY HOSPITAL HEART OF LANCASTER REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER LANCASTER GENERAL HOSPITAL LANCASTER REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER GOOD SHEPHERD REHABILITATION HOSPITAL LEHIGH VALLEY HOSPITAL SACRED HEART HOSPITAL ALLENTOWN SAINT LUKES HOSPITAL OF ALLENTOWN HAZLETON GENERAL HOSPITAL MERCY SPECIAL CARE HOSPITAL - NANTICOKE ST JOSEPH HOSPITAL POCONO MEDICAL CENTER EASTON HOSPITAL LEHIGH VALLEY HOSPITAL MUHLENBERG SAINT LUKES HOSPITAL OF BETHLEHEM HANOVER GEN HOSPITAL MEMORIAL HOSPITAL OF YORK YORK HOSPITAL

Press Releases: 2005

Successful Asthma Education Program Grows to Help More Local Families Touched by Asthma; Adds New Component for Younger Kids with Healthy Hoops, Jr.

Philadelphia, PA - More than 300 children and their parents recently kicked off the third year of Healthy Hoops, an asthma education program that targets asthmatic children from Chester and Philadelphia.

This year’s kick-off event, sponsored by AstraZeneca and Crozer-Keystone Health System, was held at Dave and Buster’s, and marked the expansion of the successful program to Chester, PA, where asthma rates among children are higher than average. The Program continues to follow up with past participants from North and West Philadelphia. New this year is Healthy Hoops, Jr. for younger asthmatic children (ages 2-6), allowing the program to reach even more children and families living with asthma.

A special highlight of the kick-off, was the attendance of the Chester High School Basketball State Champions. Two of the team’s players, Brion Chambers and Darren Govens, are successful basketball players living with asthma. The day also included health assessments and hands-on asthma education and training from area health care professionals; basketball coaching sessions for the children from local legends Jim “Bo” Boyle, Sonny Hill and Speedy Morris; and entertainment for the whole family. In addition to focusing on asthma management, this year’s program also will target childhood obesity and cardiovascular disease, as they relate to asthma.

Designed by Keystone Mercy and the Healthy Hoops Coalition, Healthy Hoops is an innovative community-based program designed to show children with asthma and their families how to properly take their medication and manage their asthma, the most common chronic illness among children in the United States. According to the 2002 Household Health Survey, 10 percent of children under the age of 18 in Southeast Pennsylvania have asthma, representing nearly 105,000 children in the region.

The program uses basketball to teach the importance of regular exercise and nutrition in managing asthma. The program was launched in 2003 with families from West Philadelphia with tremendous results: The number of participants visiting the emergency room for asthma-related difficulties dropped 78 percent, and there was a significant reduction in asthma-related sleep disturbances. Because of the positive results, last year the program expanded to include families from North Philadelphia. To date, over 600 local children with asthma, their parents and siblings have participated in the Healthy Hoops program.

For additional information about the Healthy Hoops Program, please visit www.keystonemercy.com/community/healthyhoops.

For more information and tips on managing your child’s asthma, please go to www.breatheinfo.com.



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