What You Should Know:
– To address healthcare gaps and improve maternal health outcomes, Drive Health and Google Public Sector today announced a partnership with the State of Illinois to launch Healthy Baby, a pilot program in rural Cook County that provides Google Pixel phones, Fitbit devices, and Google Cloud technologies to expectant mothers that enable access to Drive Health’s AI-powered Nurse Avery.
– The United States is facing a maternal healthcare crisis, particularly in rural and underserved communities. Research shows that more than 80% of maternal deaths are preventable (CDC 2022) and that babies of mothers who do not get prenatal care are five times more likely to die (Office on Women’s Health 2021).
AI-Powered Maternal Health Pilot Launches in Illinois to Address Disparities and Improve Outcomes
A multi-year pilot program led by Drive Health, in collaboration with Google and Cook County, will support over 56,000 participants with the goal of improving maternal and infant health outcomes. The initiative, known as Healthy Baby, targets vulnerable populations to reduce mortality, increase full-term pregnancies, and improve birth weights, while also lowering overall healthcare costs through enhanced community-based care and timely interventions.
Expectant mothers enrolled in Medicaid face persistent disparities—only 25% of high-risk patients receive consistent prenatal care, and behavioral health conditions go undiagnosed or untreated in up to 40% of cases. In Illinois, nearly one-third of counties qualify as maternal care deserts, and over 90% of hospitals face mental health workforce shortages. This pilot aims to close those gaps by integrating AI-driven support with human care pathways.
At the center of this effort is Nurse Avery, Drive Health’s agentic AI health assistant. Avery is designed to complement clinical care by bridging communication between patients and providers, optimizing prenatal adherence, and prompting timely care. Eligible participants—women in Cook County considering family planning, expectant mothers, and mothers with children under age three—will receive a Google Pixel 8a phone and a Fitbit Inspire 3 device, both pre-configured with privacy-focused, HIPAA-compliant technology.
With user consent, Fitbit devices track physical activity, heart rate, and sleep patterns, while Nurse Avery synthesizes this information to provide personalized recommendations. The Google Pixel device ensures seamless access to the Drive Health ecosystem through a secure, flexible management model that protects individual privacy.
Key features of the Healthy Baby platform include:
- Nutritional support with folic acid intake coordination for fetal neural development.
- Vaccination tracking through integration with healthcare providers.
- Chronic disease management offering ongoing consultations and guidance for conditions such as diabetes.
- Mental health and stress management tools tailored for accessible use within Medicaid populations.
- Genetic risk assessment using lab-based screenings to inform individualized care plans.
Nurse Avery also provides proactive care reminders, addresses common questions, and supports adherence to medical plans. The system is designed for high accessibility, offering voice-command options for users with limited technical literacy. Built on Google Cloud infrastructure, the platform complies with state and federal data protection standards, ensuring rigorous security of sensitive health information.
Drive Health CEO Kevin Longoria emphasized the significance of the initiative: launching Healthy Baby alongside Google, the State of Illinois, and former Senator James Clayborne marks a critical milestone in advancing equitable maternal healthcare through scalable, intelligent technologies.
