WellCare Gives $2,500 to Hope House to Provide Telepsychiatric Behavioral Health Care for Women and Children in Augusta, Georgia

WellCare Health Plans, Inc. announced today it gave $2,500 to the Hope House, a nonprofit agency that provides residential and outpatient treatment for women who suffer from substance abuse and mental health disorders.

TAMPA, Fla (PRWEB) May 19, 2015

WellCare Health Plans, Inc. WCG announced today it gave $2,500 to the Hope House, a nonprofit agency that provides residential and outpatient treatment for women who suffer from substance abuse and mental health disorders. Hope House, Inc. will use the funds to provide behavioral health care through telepsychiatric services, which connect patients and psychiatric providers through the use of television cameras and microphones.

Hope House is a residential treatment facility that serves women 18 years and older who suffer from substance abuse and mental health disorders. The organization serves three populations of women: homeless single women, pregnant women, and women with children, many who are seeking to regain custody of their children.

"Nearly all of the women we treat have suffered some trauma or abuse," said Karen Salzman, executive director of Hope House. "With WellCare's help we now offer telepsychiatric services, which offer flexible times, availability and privacy to allow more women and their children to receive the behavioral health care they need. Without treatment, substance abuse and mental health issues can repeat into future generations."

"WellCare is committed to increasing access to health care for those in rural and underserved communities is Georgia," said Dr. John Alexander Johnson, senior medical director for WellCare of Georgia. "Telepsychiatry is currently one of the most effective ways to increase access to behavioral health care, as it can provide an array of services including assessment and diagnosis, medication management, and individual and group therapy."

As of March 31, 2015, WellCare serves approximately 593,000 Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids® plan members, 32,000 Medicare Advantage plan members and 25,000 Medicare Prescription Drug Plan members in Georgia. To learn more about how we care for Georgians watch Gloria's story at http://youtu.be/qyn-nywze04.

About WellCare Health Plans, Inc.
Headquartered in Tampa, Fla., WellCare Health Plans, Inc. WCG focuses exclusively on providing government-sponsored managed care services, primarily through Medicaid, Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Plans, to families, children, seniors and individuals with complex medical needs. The Company serves approximately 3.8 million members nationwide as of March 31, 2015. For more information about WellCare, please visit the Company's website at http://www.wellcare.com or view the company's videos at https://www.youtube.com/user/WellCareHealthPlan.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2015/05/prweb12732314.htm