Congress is in shambles right now, but that hasn’t stopped Senator Cory Booker and Representative Ayanna Pressley from working on big changes to our health care system. The lawmakers exclusively shared with The Root that they plan to re-introduce the MOMMIES Act, a bill aimed at helping parents during one of the most dangerous times in their lives, the postpartum period.
“The United States spends more on health care than any other nation, but we still have the highest rate of maternal mortality among our peer countries,” said Senator Booker in a statement. “We must ensure that no person, regardless of their background, faces inequities or disparities when accessing or receiving maternal care. This legislation is an important step towards addressing our nation’s health disparities and promoting equitable maternal healthcare for all. I urge my colleagues in the Senate to pass this critical bill.”
The bill primarily helps new parents by expanding the coverage window for pregnant people with Medicaid from 60 days to an entire year — a change that experts argue could dramatically improve outcomes for vulnerable groups, including Black pregnant people. Black women currently face a maternal mortality rate three times that of their white counterparts.
As it stands, Medicaid covers nearly half of all births in the United States. But in many parts of the country, people are unceremoniously kicked off of Medicaid once they hit the 60-day mark postpartum.
The postpartum period can be incredibly dangerous. According to KFF, at least a third of maternal deaths occur during the postpartum period, and disruptions to access to health care disproportionately impact Black women and other vulnerable groups.
For Rep. Pressley, pushing this legislation is personal. “My paternal grandmother died in the 1950s while giving birth,” shared the Congresswoman, “and it is absolutely damning that decades later, the Black maternal morbidity crisis in America is still killing our loved ones and destabilizing our families.”
In addition to expanding Medicaid coverage, the bill would also help increase access to Doula care, study Telehealth, and create a pilot program for Maternity Care Homes — where parents can stay to get care and learn how to care for their newborns.
“With the Supreme Court’s cruel Dobbs decision only exacerbating this crisis, Congress must pass our bill to promote community-based, holistic approaches to maternity and postpartum care so that every pregnant person is treated with the dignity and respect they deserve during and after their pregnancy,” said Pressley in a statement. “Maternal health justice is a racial justice issue and a matter of life and death, and we must make comprehensive, culturally-congruent reproductive care a reality for all.”