Chapter 5 examines increasing mortality and morbidity in the United States among pregnant and postpartum women. Approximately 700 women die annually as a result of pregnancy or related complications, with such deaths occurring over the course of pregnancy and in the postpartum period. These trends are not limited to Medicaid, but because Medicaid finances more than two out of every five U.S. births, poor outcomes for many women and infants could be addressed through Medicaid policy.
Chapter 5 begins by describing the maternal and infant health outcomes that are raising alarm. It explains Medicaid’s role in providing maternity care and goes on to describe state-led and federal initiatives to improve access to care and the quality of services pregnant women in Medicaid receive. It concludes with a discussion of future areas of work for the Commission, including value-based payment, access to maternity providers, family planning services, and postpartum coverage.
From: June 2020 Report to Congress on Medicaid and CHIP