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U.S. CTO Aneesh Chopra announced the launch of Text4baby, what it says is an “unprecedented mobile health public-private partnership” designed to promote maternal and child health among underserved women. The service provides timely and expert health information through SMS to pregnant women and new moms through their babies’ first year.
Here’s how it works (from the press release):
By texting BABY to 511411 (or BEBE for Spanish), women receive three free SMS text messages each week timed to their due date or baby’s date of birth. These messages focus on a variety of topics critical to maternal and child health, including birth defects prevention, immunization, nutrition, seasonal flu, mental health, oral health and safe sleep. Text4baby messages also connect women to prenatal and infant care services and other resources.
In addition to the U.S. government, founding partners include National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition (HMHB), Voxiva, CTIA – The Wireless Foundation, grey healthcare group and founding corporate sponsor Johnson & Johnson. Then there are sponsors (WellPoint, Pfizer, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, MTV, etc.) and mobile operators, which are distributing free text messages. Speaking of operators, all major players and some smaller ones are on board to support the initiative: Alltel, Assurance Wireless, AT&T, Boost Mobile, Cellular South, Cellcom, Centennial Cellular, Cincinnati Bell, Metro PCS, N-Telos, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, Verizon Wireless and Virgin Mobile USA.
And you can get all other information from the official Text4baby website.
About The Author
Dusan Belic
Dusan has been using smartphones since their introduction and is now following the latest trends in the industry. The "convergence" is what he's most excited about, and writing about it is the next logical thing to do. He thinks that using a smartphone is what everyone who cares about their time should do. In addition to his interests in mobile phones, Dusan also loves to experiment with the latest web and mobile 2.0 services. The idea of accessing and managing your information from any device no matter where you are simply amazes him. Whether it's an online to-do list, note taking service or a video sharing social network, he's there to try it out. He admits though, he's still searching for the ultimate web-based organizational tool, which "sings" perfectly with the mobile PIM application. Dusan used to run SymbianWatch.com which later became part of IntoMobile. He lives in Serbia, South-East Europe, from where he edits the site on a daily basis.
