Medicaid covers almost half of births in the U.S., but federal law requires that pregnancy-related Medicaid coverage last only through 60 days postpartum, so the Center for Reproductive Rights asked legislators to urge Congress to fix that with the Build Back Better law.
Progressive activist Lisa McCormick said she was shocked to learn that no New Jersey lawmaker was among the 150 state legislators who signed a letter encouraging congressional leaders to include permanent and mandatory postpartum Medicaid coverage for one year in the Build Back Better Act.
“Nearly half of births in the U.S. are covered by Medicaid so extending postpartum coverage is critical to the health of many American women,” said McCormick, who noted that one-third of pregnancy-related deaths occur between one week to a year after birth, disproportionately impacting Black and Indigenous women.
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 60% of maternal deaths are preventable, but only nineteen states have voluntarily extended postpartum Medicaid coverage to 12 months without any additional eligibility criteria,” said McCormick. “This inconsistency has resulted in disparate access to postpartum care across the nation.”
“It is essential that Congress correct this with permanent and mandatory postpartum coverage for all women served by Medicaid during the first year to ensure fair and impartial care, regardless of zip code,” said McCormick, who has noted that about 700 women die from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth every year, putting the U.S. in last place among all developed nations in terms of maternal mortality.
McCormick said Congress must take action to ensure quality health care access for pregnant and postpartum women in every state and Vice President Kamala Harris called on the Senate to swiftly pass Build Back Better to expand access to maternal care for America’s families.
“I cannot understand why nobody in the New Jersey Legislature joined in calling for a mandatory provision of postpartum Medicaid coverage, when state officials from all across America worked together to meet the needs of birthing women in their critical postpartum period,” said McCormick. “Despite studies that show that extending postpartum Medicaid coverage for one year would help reduce maternal mortality, politics has gotten in the way and the result is that more American women died.”
“Reproductive health requires access to care before, during, and after pregnancy,” said McCormick.
“I struggled with postpartum depression after the birth of my son, so I know how much harder that made being a good parent,” said McCormick. “If we are serious about ensuring have healthy early childhoods for our children, then America’s health insurance policies must support mothers as they recover from pregnancy so they can nurture their babies.”
See the full text of the letter here.
To help address racial disparities, improve maternal health and increase coverage stability, a provision in the American Rescue Plan Act gives states a new option to extend Medicaid postpartum coverage to 12 months using a state plan amendment (SPA).
This new option takes effect on April 1, 2022 and is available to states for five years.
Under current law, states must provide continuous coverage to Medicaid enrollees through the public health emergency (PHE) period to be eligible for enhanced federal matching funds under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.
States seeking to implement extended postpartum coverage after the end of the PHE but prior to April 1, 2022 must do so through a section 1115 waiver or by using state funds.
New Jersey is one of just five states with approved 1115 waivers. The others are Virginia, Georgia, Illinois and Missouri.
New Jersey’s Section 1115 extension includes continuous 12-month postpartum eligibility during the entire coverage period, regardless of any change in income, but McCormick said that is no reason for Garden State lawmakers to ignore the need to make this rule uniform across the country.
“Stark racial disparities in maternal and infant health in the U.S. have persisted for decades despite continued advancements in medical care,” said McCormick. “Pregnancy-related mortality rates among Black and Native American women are up to three times higher when compared to the death rate for White women.”\
“All Americans should be outraged that we allow so many American women to die as a consequence of childbirth,” said McCormick. “There is no acceptable reason why every one of New Jersey’s 120 state legislators sat on the sidelines when the Center for Reproductive Rights asked legislators to encourage Congress to include one year of postpartum Medicaid coverage in the Build Back Better law.”
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