This win will provide an additional 10 months of coverage through Medicaid for over 120,000 pregnant women each year, after the birth of their babies. Forty-one states are working on or have already implemented 12-month postpartum coverage.
The postpartum period after birth is a particularly important and sensitive time for both the parent who carried the child and their newborn baby. Parents can face a variety of health challenges postpartum including depression, anxiety, pain, and complications that may have arisen during pregnancy or childbirth. Medicaid coverage provides an avenue for parents with moderate to low income to receive financial support as it relates to their pregnancy and the postpartum period. To learn more about ZERO TO THREE’s policy recommendations for health care access and affordability, check out the Good Health section of our State of Babies Yearbook.
