Lamaze International is pleased to announce its support for the Congressional Black Maternal Health Caucus’ Momnibus that Caucus members introduced on Tuesday, March 10, 2020. The Momnibus is a package of nine bills that each implement specific measures to promote maternity care for women disproportionately affected by maternal mortality and morbidity, and who have poorer childbirth outcomes than the national average. These bills build upon existing legislation that seeks to extend Medicaid coverage to 12 months postpartum, increase access to birth and health centers for underserved populations, and develop maternity care quality standards and supports maternity care collaboratives.

The Momnibus would increase access to comprehensive and quality prenatal services such as evidence-based childbirth education, which empowers women to make informed birth choices, encourages parents to initiate birth-preference discussions with their care teams, and decreases rates of unnecessary birth procedures. Such initiatives would improve U.S. maternal and childbirth outcomes and reduce U.S. maternal mortality rates that disproportionately affect black women.

Momnibus Bills

1. H.R. 6132, the Social Determinants for Moms Act would invest in health social determinants that influence maternal health outcomes, such as housing, transportation, and nutrition.
2. The Honoring Kira Johnson Act would help fund community-based organizations that are help improve maternal health outcomes for Black women.
3. The Protecting Moms who Served Act would study the maternal-health risks women veterans face and invest in VA maternity-care coordination.
4. H.R. 6164, the Perinatal Workforce Act would increase and diversify the perinatal workforce to ensure that all women receive maternity care and support from perinatal workers.
5. H.R. 5640/S. 3152, the Data Mapping to Save Moms’ Lives Act would improve data collection processes and quality measures to better understand maternal health crisis causes in the United States and inform solutions to address it.
6. The Moms MATTER Act would support maternal mental healthcare and substance use disorder treatments.
7. The Justice for Incarcerated Moms Act would improve maternal health care and support for incarcerated women.
8. The Tech to Save Moms Act would invest in digital tools such as telehealth to improve maternal health outcomes for women in underserved areas.
9. The IMPACT to Save Moms Act would promote innovative payment models to incentivize high-quality maternity care and continue health-insurance coverage from pregnancy through one-year postpartum.

Lamaze International applauds the Black Maternal Health Caucus for their leadership on this critical issue and looks forward to supporting this effort during the next Lamaze Advocacy Summit.  Stay tuned for more information on the Momnibus and other legislative initiatives that increase access to evidence-based childbirth education and improve maternal health outcomes for all women.

Contact Molly Giammarco, Government Relations Senior Manager, to learn more about these initiatives. 

About Molly Giammarco

Molly Giammarco has consulted for professional healthcare associations for more than eight years. As Lamaze International’s Senior Manager for Policy & Government Relations, Molly monitors legislation regulations related to maternal and child health, as well as advises the Lamaze Advocacy + Collaboration Committee.

Molly received her undergraduate degree from Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts and her master’s degree in public policy from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C.  She currently lives in Washington, D.C.

Published: March 11, 2020

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