HPC approves $1.5M Heart BP initiative to expand remote blood‑pressure monitoring for pregnant people

The Health Policy Commission approved a $1.5 million investment program (Heart BP) to expand remote blood‑pressure monitoring for pregnant and postpartum people with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.

Taylor Bungo, who led the investment effort, told the commission the program will support five awardees (four Distress Hospital Trust Fund‑eligible hospitals and one OB provider through the Payment Reform Trust Fund) with grants up to $300,000 each over a 27–30 month performance period (including a 3–6 month planning period and a 6‑month evaluation window). The program’s aims include making high‑quality, patient‑centered remote blood‑pressure monitoring available for at least six weeks postpartum, improving access and outcomes for people at risk of hypertensive disorders, addressing inequities in access and experience, reducing avoidable readmissions and ED visits, and collecting evaluation data to inform sustainable scaling.

Staff recommended funding all five applicants who applied for the five award slots. The awardees were presented as: Berkshire Medical Center (new program built on existing partnerships, plan to hire bilingual community health workers and provide cellular‑enabled cuffs), Beverly Hospital (expand an existing Beacon program and deploy clinical pharmacists as primary contacts, tablets in multiple languages), Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center (build on existing BP monitoring and outreach), Heywood Hospital (new program with maternal care hub and social‑support referrals), and one OB provider through the Payment Reform Trust Fund. Staff emphasized equity safeguards (device sizing, multilingual materials, patient experience input, anti‑racism training in technical assistance) and said MassHealth now reimburses remote BP monitoring including cuffs and education for eligible members.

Commissioners asked about evaluation, payer reimbursement and patient‑provider coordination. Staff said evaluation will examine implementation feasibility, what works in practice (timing of enrollment, duration, patient supports), and whether the program reduces ED visits/readmissions; they emphasized a strong patient‑experience feedback loop to avoid leaving marginalized patients behind. The board voted to approve the award recommendations and staff will move into contracting and technical assistance planning for launch in mid‑2025.