First Choice Community Center Makes Going Back to School Easy and Fun

Sixth annual event offers health screenings, school supplies, backpacks and more

COLUMBIA, SC – Select Health of South Carolina and its First Choice Community Center will host their sixth annual Jump-Start Back-to-School event, featuring back-to-school information, health screenings, children’s activities and backpacks with school supplies provided at no cost, while quantities last, on Saturday, July 25, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. To pre-register or learn more, call 1-888-676-9588. Select Health of South Carolina, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, is the state’s oldest and largest Medicaid managed care organization and is part of AmeriHealth Caritas Family of Companies.

“Starting the school year in good health is just as important as having the supplies necessary to succeed,” said Lillian Suarez, director of community education for Select Health. “We’re working together with a wide array of health care providers, agencies and community partners to give children and their families a good start towards a healthy and successful academic year.”

Children will be entertained with a variety of activities, giving parents and caregivers an opportunity to talk with medical professionals and community resource providers. Select Health’s bilingual staff will assist Spanish-speaking families, and interpretation services will be available for attendees with limited English proficiency. The First Choice Community Center, located in the Widewater Square Shopping Center at 3315 Broad River Road in Columbia, offers information about First Choice benefits and services available to Midlands area families.

“Good health is proven to help children perform at their best in school,” said Dr. Greg Barabell, pediatrician and medical director at Select Health. “School-aged children up to age 21 need yearly well visits with a primary care physician, and our staff can help First Choice members schedule these appointments with their doctors. A school sports physical is not the same as a well visit.”

“We’ve partnered with more than 50 community organizations to offer a wide range of support services,” added Suarez. “Each partner shares the common goal of improving the overall health of our community.”

The First Choice Community Center opened in 2009 as a place for individuals and families with limited incomes to learn about programs, services and resources available to assist them. For more information about the First Choice Community Center or the Jump-Start Back-to-School event, call 1.888.676.9588, or visitwww.selecthealthofsc.com and click on the Community tab. View Select Health’s 2015 Message to the Community at www.selecthealthofsc.com/pdf/corporate/message-to-community.pdf.

Select Health of South Carolina Mission:

To help people get care, stay well and build healthy communities.

ABOUT SELECT HEALTH

Select Health of South Carolina is celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2015, which demonstrates our strength, stability and expertise in providing access to high quality health care for South Carolinians. Incorporated in 1995, Select Health was licensed as a Health Maintenance Organization by the South Carolina Department of Insurance in 1996. Later that year, the company contracted with the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to offer First Choice, which is now the state’s oldest and largest health plan for Healthy Connections, South Carolina’s Medicaid program. First Choice serves members in all 46 counties statewide.

First Choice by Select Health of South Carolina is the highest nationally ranked health plan for South Carolina Healthy Connections at #61 on the National Committee for Quality Assurance’s (NCQA’s) Medicaid Health Insurance Plan Rankings 2014-2015. (Note: The South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (SCDHHS) uses other criteria for evaluating and ranking the performance of health plans serving Medicaid beneficiaries. To view these results, please visit www.scdhhs.gov/reports-statistics).Select Health also holds NCQA’s Multicultural Health Care Distinction.

Select Health is a wholly-owned member of the AmeriHealth Caritas Family of Companies.