Chapter 2 builds on the Commission’s prior descriptive work on Medicaid’s essential role in maternal health, focusing on the rich evidence base that highlights the importance of postpartum care in the year after delivery and the unacceptably high rates of maternal mortality and morbidity among people of color generally and among those covered by Medicaid specifically. Current Medicaid coverage for individuals enrolled in Medicaid coverage by virtue of their pregnancy ends after 60 days postpartum, causing disruptions to care and access to coverage.
In this Chapter, the Commission recommends a mandatory extension of the postpartum coverage period for individuals who were eligible and enrolled in Medicaid while pregnant to a full year of coverage, regardless of changes in income with 100 percent federal matching rate. The Commission also recommends that the postpartum coverage period for individuals who were eligible and enrolled in the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) while pregnant be extended to a full year of coverage. A third recommendation would require states to provide full Medicaid benefits to individuals enrolled in pregnancy-related pathways.
From: March 2021 Report to Congress on Medicaid and CHIP