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New Family Home Visits Initiative

The New Family Home Visits Initiative supports pregnant and parenting families with children younger than 4 years old by offering in-person or virtual support from health workers.

Health care providers and community-based organizations can refer families to services through the Health Department’s Coordinated Intake and Referral System. Health Department staff screen and contact the families eligible for these home visiting programs as well as other community services.

Coordinated Intake and Referral System

Providers can make referrals to the New Family Home Visits Initiative programs through the Coordinated Intake and Referral System. It allows providers involved in a family’s care to communicate with other providers, and send, receive, and track referrals. Providers can also create and download reports from the system.

Both providers and families benefit from the system:

  • It simplifies the referral process, improves access to care, and reduces the duplication of services.
  • It connects families to vital services to complement your care and improves their health and wellbeing.
  • It is fast and free. All services are provided at no cost to referral partners, providers and families.

Providers who want to use the Coordinated Intake and Referral System should fill out the form below. Health Department staff will reach out to coordinate the next steps.

Coordinated Intake and Referral System Inquiries

For more information, email your name, contact information, and the best day and time to contact you, with “CI&R partner inquiry” in the subject line, to nfhv-info@health.nyc.gov.

Program-Specific Information

Learn more about programs your clients may be eligible for:

All of these programs focus on serving families that reside in Taskforce on Racial Inclusion & Equity (TRIE) neighborhoods, public housing, Department of Homeless Services (DHS) shelters, and families receiving support from the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS).

Building Capacity for Doulas

The Citywide Doula Initiative (CDI) is building a diverse and sustainable workforce of doulas to support clients who are experiencing stress from social, racial, and economic inequalities. The program offers training to community members who want to become doulas and to experienced doulas who want to join the CDI. Email CDI@health.nyc.gov to learn about upcoming training.

Systems Change

Doula support is a promising way to reduce racial inequities in birth outcomes. Currently, babies born to Black and Puerto Rican mothers in NYC are three times more likely to die in their first year of life than babies born to non-Hispanic White mothers. Further, non-Hispanic Black women are eight times more likely than non-Hispanic White women to die from pregnancy-related causes.

Research shows that families in a community-based doula program are less likely to have a preterm or low-birthweight baby, which means they have a lower risk of infant mortality.

The CDI's doula-friendly hospital work helps more families get the doula support they need.

Learn how hospitals can become more doula-friendly:

The New York Coalition for Doula Access (NYCDA) seeks to ensure that doulas have a powerful voice in determining their own professional standards, including securing Medicaid coverage for doula services, as well as increasing access to doula care in underserved communities and improving the integration of doulas as valued members of the maternity care team.

The NYC Health Department produces an annual report describing the state of doula care in the city. The report reviews challenges for patients in getting doula support, outlines the Health Department's plan for expanding access, and includes a scientific literature review of doula care benefits.

Additional Resources

More Information