By The 2020 Mom Policy Team

In honor of Black History Month, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) hosted a briefing on maternal health priorities and activities on Friday, 17th, 2023. Secretary Xavier Becerra and other key agency leaders shared new funding authorized by the passage of the federal budget bill (the Omnibus) and other Department activities to advance maternal health outcomes, including addressing inequities.

Notably, HHS described the forthcoming Task Force for Maternal Mental Health, which we were proud to shepherd and will prioritize the implementation through direct technical consultation with HHS. The task force will address barriers and facilitators to maternal mental health care in America, including addressing structural inequities.

The key actions and programs that federal agencies have implemented are outlined below. Many of these updates will be discussed in further detail at the upcoming Maternal Mental Health FORUM.

HRSA

This year the Healthy Start Program - which is aimed at preventing infant mortality received Omnibus funding to create a doula training program.

Maternal health innovation awards will be expanded -states must not only develop innovative approaches to addressing maternal health but evaluate their approaches.

The Omnibus reauthorized the Maternal Child Health home visiting program with significant new funding.

Improving data collection around maternal health through partnership and collaboration.

The Alliance for Innovation in Maternity Care (AIM) Program, who HRSA contracts with the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) to manage, produces quality improvement “bundles” which are are now adopted in over 1800 hospitals and in 48 states.

Will be dispersing new funding to create maternal health task forces -to design new maternal health interventions, general in concert with Perinatal Quality Collaboratives.

HRSA is the home of community health center (grew out of the civil rights movement)

CMS

The option for states to expand Postpartum Medicaid Extension was made permanent by Congress late last year. (Track which states extending Medicaid here.)

CMS also referred attendees to the CMS Maternity Care Action Plan. (Read our blog post Response to the action plan and CMS Proposes New Rules: Birthing Friendly Hospitals and CMS Finalizes Birthing Friendly Hospital Rules.)

CDC

The CDC referred to its expanding EREASE Maternal Mortality program, which extends support to more states to investigate and track causes of maternal mortality, including maternal suicide, through Maternal Mortality Review Committees (MMRCs).

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH)

OASH explained new efforts to link inpatient data linkage between mothers and infants and its Office of Minority Health’s work with the CDC on developing a new ‘Hear Her’ campaign for the Native American / Alaskan Native population (those registered for our Maternal Mental Health FORUM will experience a panel on NA/AI maternal health including hearing from the CDC’s campaign lead), and it’s existing CLAS Culturally Competency training for providers.

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

The NIH shared the work happening in its IMPROVE maternal mortality and morbidity research program.

The presenter shared that via Omnibus funding, they are now developing a RadX Technology Challenge for wearables and other diagnostics specific to maternity care.

It also recently closed its Connecting Community for Maternal Health Challenge to bolster nonprofit organizations in developing their research efforts to produce data and research results to improve maternal health in their communities and provide expert guidance to those in the health delivery system.
They will be developing a longitudinal health record to link maternal - child health records.
Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence awards will be made in 2023.

SAMHSA

Funding for Residential treatment for pregnant and postpartum women for Substance Use Disorder (SUD), through the “Pregnant and Postpartum Women “PPW” program.

Additional funds were authorized to support family-based services for pregnant and postpartum women who have a primary diagnosis of a SUD, emphasizing the treatment of opioid use disorder.

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