U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, M.D., Aug. 28 released an advisory on the mental health and well-being of parents.
Maternal Health Advocacy Updates
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Federal Public Policy and Legislative Solutions for Improving Maternal Health
Maternal health is a top priority for the AHA and our member hospitals and health systems; and our initial efforts are aimed at eliminating maternal mortality and reducing severe morbidity. As hospitals work to improve health outcomes, we are redoubling our efforts to improve maternal health across the continuum of care and reaching out to community partners to aid in this important effort. The causes of maternal mortality and morbidity are complex, including lack of consistent access to comprehensive care and persistent racial disparities in health and health care. To help improve maternal health, the AHA supports the federal public policy and legislative actions discussed in this document.
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The Department of Health and Human Services Aug. 27 announced it will award more than $558 million to support maternal health initiatives.
The Health Resources and Services Administration June 11 announced that Montana is eligible for $5.4 million in federal funding this year for the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting program, which provides voluntary home visits to improve maternal and child health for families in high-risk communities.
A report released May 29 by the Government Accountability Office found a lack of state oversight on Medicaid managed care plans’ use of prio
The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions May 23 passed legislation that included proposals on mental health and emergency pediatric services during a markup session.
The AHA shared a series of proposals to strengthen rural health care with the Senate Finance Committee for a hearing May 16 titled, “Rural Health Care: Supporting Lives and Improving Communities.”
The House May 15 passed legislation reauthorizing the Emergency Medical Services for Children Program (H.R. 6960) for an additional five years, providing funding for equipment and training to help hospitals and paramedics treat pediatric emergencies.
Mounting pressures on the health care workforce have created a crisis with short-term staffing shortages and a long-range picture of an unfulfilled talent pipeline, and significant projected shortages of physicians and allied health and behavioral health care providers will likely be felt even more strongly in underserved communities, AHA told the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee in a statement submitted for a hearing May 2.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee March 20 unanimously passed AHA-supported legislation to reauthorize through 2029 the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act (H.R. 7153), which provides grants to help health care organizations offer behavioral health services for front-line health care workers.
The House March 5 voted 382-12 to pass the AHA-supported Preventing Maternal Deaths Reauthorization Act (H.R. 3838), bipartisan legislation that would reauthorize federal support for state-based committees that review pregnancy-related deaths to identify causes and make recommendations to prevent future mortalities.
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health Feb. 29 held a hearing on legislative proposals to expand access to treatment for patients with rare diseases, which included two hospital witnesses.
At the federal level, several legislative initiatives specific to maternal mortality have been enacted. Several other initiatives have been introduced in Congress the last year.
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (PL 117-328), signed into law in December 2022, contained a number of important maternal and child health provisions supported by the AHA.
AHA comments on the CMS’ Request for Information on Essential Health Benefits (EHB).
The House Ways and Means Committee today voted to advance to the full House bipartisan legislation (H.R. 8876) that would reauthorize the federal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program, and double annual funding for the program to $800 million over five years.
The House Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means committees approved their legislative recommendations for the Build Back Better Act, which will be considered under budget reconciliation.
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health voted to advance to the full committee a number of AHA-supported bills focused on maternal health and social determinants of health.
The Nursing Community Coalition (NCC) wrote to the co-sponsors of the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act of 2021 (H.R. 959/S. 346) to reiterate the coalition’s support for the legislation.
The AHA voiced support for several provisions in the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act of 2021.
The 115 undersigned national organizations dedicated to improving maternal health urge you to swiftly pass the bipartisan Maternal Health Quality Improvement Act (H.R. 4995) and the bipartisan Helping MOMS Act of 2020 (H.R. 4996) as soon as possible – whether as part of the next spending package or another appropriate legislative vehicle before the end of the 116th Congress. Final passage of H.R. 4995 and H.R. 4996 is a critical and foundational next step in Congress’ work to address maternal mortality and improve maternal health.