Press Release

INTotal Health’s Medicaid Fun Bus Tours Northern Virginia

July 8, 2015

FALLS CHURCH, VA — For the next eight weeks, INTotal Health’s Medicaid Fun Bus will travel to counties and communities throughout Northern Virginia to let the underserved Medicaid population know they can exercise their right to choose a health plan during open enrollment, which ends Aug. 31.

“We’re definitely excited to be out in the community with our fun bus,” says Tarik Chapman, manager, community outreach. “It’s so important that we inform the Medicaid population about their rights and options available to them. We want the community to know about the enrollment process and to know that INTotal Health is here, we care, and we can help.”

During the INTotal Health Medicaid Fun Bus Tour, staff will be onsite to answer questions about INTotal Health, how to apply for Medicaid, and how to switch Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MCO).

The fun bus is fully equipped with interactive games and activities such as Nintendo Wii consoles with games such as Just Dance and Zumba Fitness; hula-hoops; and Wii sports.

“We want everyone to think about us when they think about ways to receive accurate information on how to make healthy lifestyle choices,” explains Chapman. “We want them to know that they have the right to choose a health plan for their family, and we want them to exercise that right.”

Each week the INTotal Health Medicaid Fun Bus will be in a different county and community. The next stop on the INTotal Health Medicaid Fun Bus Tour is Prince William County. The fun bus will be in PWC from July 6 through July 15. For other locations and times, visit: www.intotalhealth.org/content/choose, www.facebook.com/INTotalHealth, www.twitter.com/INTotalHealth, or call 1.855.323.5588.

INTotal Health is a Managed Care Organization (MCO) that has specialized in Medicaid services for the past nine years and helps more than 57,000 members throughout Northern Virginia, Alleghany/Roanoke, Culpeper, Winchester, and the Far Southwest. INTotal Health is accredited by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and has met rigorous requirements for consumer protection and quality improvement for its well-established service programs and clinical quality. For more information, visit www.intotalhealth.org or call 1.855.323.5588.

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INTotal Health Partners with Babies “R” Us to Provide Free Prenatal Class

July 8, 2015

FALLS CHURCH, VA — On July 20, from 7 to 8 p.m., INTotal Health will provide the community with a free prenatal class: Prenatal Care for You and Your Baby through its new partnership with Babies “R” Us’ Falls Church location. The class is open to everyone, both Medicaid recipients and those expectant mothers who do not have Medicaid.

Alex Nichols, INTotal Health’s outreach representative, says partnering with Babies “R” Us is a win-win for both the store and INTotal Health.

“The community outreach team dedicates time to health promotion,” states Nichols. “We understand that the more people know about their health, the more they can be proactive. We also focus on networking with other community organizations that have the same goal: promoting a healthy lifestyle through education and resources to those in need — the underserved population. Many people do not know about the available resources that can help them. However, that’s when INTotal Health stands in the gap between the families who need something and the community partner who can provide it.”

The prenatal class will be taught by one of INTotal Health’s registered nurses who will provide expertise on birth plans, diet and nutrition, and the importance of early prenatal care. The class will drive INTotal Health members to the Falls Church store, which will provide that location with greater exposure and possible future customers. In turn, INTotal Health will gain access to new mothers who attend the class who may not be an INTotal Health member.

“The class participants who are not an INTotal Health member may be looking for a Medicaid Managed Care Organization (MCO) that is more available to them and their needs,” expresses Nichols. “INTotal Health is here for them, we’re out in the community, and we care. We want to show them that we can provide the medical care for their newborn child. Not only teach them what they can expect from the entire birthing experience, but also what they can expect from us. It’s our duty to serve our members and the community as a whole.”

Nichols continues, “We want to work with as many community partners as we can to provide the free services we’re offering. Whether they need volunteers for an outreach event or food distribution; if they want to receive health information or if they want us to teach a health education class; we’re available, that’s what we love to do. We really thank Babies “R” Us and all of our community partners for being great partners, in total health.”

For more information about INTotal Health and the prenatal class, visit www.intotalhealth.org, www.facebook.com/INTotalHealth, www.twitter.com/INTotalHealth, or call 1.855.323.5588.

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Amerigroup Virginia, LLC Transitions to INTotal Health

July 1, 2013

Inova acquisition underscores commitment to health and well-being

VIENNA, VA – As of Monday, July 1^st the Medicaid managed care organization formerly known as Amerigroup Virginia, LLC became INTotal Health, an Inova company acquired on December 1, 2012.

Serving over 57,000 members throughout Virginia, participant benefits including health coverage, provider access, prescriptions, Boys and Girls Club membership, disease management, health education and 24-hour Nurse Helpline remain as part of the Inova coverage. “Our team is very excited about our new name and our new look,” commented Renee Maccannon, CEO of INTotal Health. “We remain committed to the relationships we have built with our members, our providers, and our community partners. Having the opportunity to be a part of the Inova family and service promise only strengthens our position within the Commonwealth.”

Additional information including membership, benefits, claim status and other helpful resources may be accessed at www.intotalhealth.org.

Inova is a not-for-profit health care system located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, serving over two million people with over 1,700 licensed beds based in Northern Virginia. Inova consists of five hospitals including the area’s only Level 1 Trauma Center and Level 3 Neonatal Intensive Care unit. Inova encompasses many health services including the nationally and internationally recognized Inova Heart and Vascular Institute (IHVI), Inova Translational Medicine Institute (ITMI) on genomics, Inova Neuroscience Institute and Inova Children’s Hospital. Inova’s mission is to improve the health of the diverse community it serves through excellence in patient care, education and research. More information and statistics about Inova is at www.inova.org.

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American psychiatrists and neurologists have come together to comprehend the truth of folk wisdom: stress leads to aging. Scientists have also found that this process can be reversible.

Researchers at Columbia University have found that reducing stress can prevent gray hair. It is hoped that drugs can be developed that would “treat” gray hair.

During the study, it turned out that the hair over the entire skin of the head can “forget” about the gray hair and return to the original “fresh” color. This is especially true for the beard – men are lucky.

Presumably, gray hair causes changes in the metabolism, during which proteins are formed. The effects of stress hormones have also been observed. So if you work on anxiety and excitement, you can avoid premature gray hair.

To come to this conclusion, the researchers studied the hair of the volunteers, tracing the gray hair progress from base to tip. This method of analysis is similar to the study of tree rings in a tree trunk to determine their age. But if a ring is formed in wood in a year, then a centimeter grows in hair in a month.

“Based on a methodology similar to dendrochronology, where the growth rings show years past, we took the hair length as a reflection of time, and the hair shaft as a physical time scale. The area close to the root is formed from a hair follicle, and this part stores the memory of weeks or months depending on the length of the shaft,” they said at Columbia University.

We evaluated the level of melanin, which gives the hair a color, and protein in various parts of the shaft. Scientists expected to see gray hair at the roots, but almost 400 hair from 14 volunteers convinced them. It turned out that the hair was gray at the ends. That is, the “whiteness” froze and the color returned with growth in an incomprehensible way.

Then psychologists joined in, they compared the gray hair with the period of time in which it appeared, and with the events in the life of the volunteers. So a correlation with the level of stress was found.

For example, one study participant went on vacation, had a good rest, and the spread of gray hair stopped.

It sounds good, but scientists can’t prove the obvious connection, although they consider their conclusions closest to the truth.

“Our evidence supports the notion that aging is non-linear and irreversible. Maybe, at least partially, it can be stopped and even its course completely changed,” the scientists add.

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