Meridian Health Plan of Illinois and March of Dimes Launch $1.2 million Maternal Health Partnership

Meridian Health Plan of Illinois announced a $1.2 million multiyear partnership with March of Dimes on November 10, 2026, to expand maternal and infant health services across Chicagoland. PR Newswire carried the announcement.

How the Meridian and March of Dimes Funds Are Used

Meridian Health Plan said $1.1 million of the award will help grow the March of Dimes Mom & Baby Mobile Health Center program, which focuses on reducing preventable maternal health risks and improving birth outcomes through culturally responsive services. The new mobile unit will be deployed for programming in early 2027. The remaining funding supports community events.

The partnership began with a pilot program in which the organizations hosted three Mom and Baby pop-up clinics, and it grew through virtual and in-person events. In 2026, the pop-up clinics continue alongside community wellness events, with an upcoming event in Garfield Park on November 14. In 2025, the first year of the partnership, events included a virtual webinar in April on maternal health, prenatal care and doulas, the annual March for Babies – South Suburban event in Orland Park in June, and two Pregnancy and Community Wellness Events in Chicago in June and August. This year, the partnership hosted a Pregnancy and Community Wellness Event in May at Chicago Heights that provided health screenings, fresh groceries, diapers and wipes, and educational resources.

March of Dimes reports that in Illinois in 2024, 1 in 12 babies (8.6% of live births) were low birthweight, and that in Chicago, 1 in 10 babies (10.0% of live births) were born preterm in 2024. "These statistics are the reason why Meridian is partnering with organizations like March of Dimes. At Meridian, we believe every mom and baby should have a healthy start," said Cristal Gary, Meridian Plan President and CEO. Ashley Thies, Senior Executive Director at March of Dimes, said: "We envision a world where every mom and baby are healthy, regardless of their geography, race, gender or income, but unfortunately that is just not the case."

Meridian's Record of Community Health Partnerships

According to akta.pro company records, Meridian Health Plan of Illinois and Centene Foundation jointly awarded a $2.2 million grant to Safer Foundation in January 2026 for the purchase and renovation of a 23-unit affordable housing building in Chicago's South Austin neighborhood. In December 2025, Meridian committed $1.15 million over three years to Food On The Move, a mobile food pantry program operated by St. Louis Area Foodbank, serving approximately 60,000 community members through 2028. The same records list a planned January 2027 renewal of the State of Illinois HealthChoice Illinois managed care contract.

Earlier Meridian Health Plan of Illinois Announcements

In August 2026, Somethings and Meridian Health Plan of Illinois partnered to offer peer-based mental health support to over 159,000 Medicaid and YouthCare members ages 13 to 21 in Illinois, PR Newswire reported. In October 2026, a contract dispute between Meridian Health Plan and Detroit Medical Center could remove DMC from the network on January 1, 2027, affecting over 880,000 Michigan members, Yahoo reported.

March of Dimes Mobile Care on the Navajo Nation

On November 10, 2026, March of Dimes launched its first mobile health center on the Navajo Nation in Arizona in partnership with Sage Memorial Hospital, bringing prenatal, postpartum and infant care to rural communities, PR Newswire reported.