Pregnancy and childbirth should be a time of joy, love, and celebration, but far too many American mothers face roadblocks when accessing the care they need.
A lack of access to care can cause complications and sometimes death for mothers before, during, or after childbirth. Maternal deaths are almost entirely preventable. Improvements to maternal health coverage and care will lead to better outcomes for pregnant mothers and their children.
Here are some critically important statistics to keep in mind:
- Almost two-thirds of pregnancy related deaths occur outside the week of birth. Access to coverage throughout the continuum of care helps achieve better outcomes.
- Nearly 98% of births in the country occur in hospitals, so every hospital must have the resources needed to care for mothers and children.
- Medicaid is the source of coverage for 42% of patients receiving essential pregnancy care services. Protecting Medicaid means protecting mothers, so this Coalition won't stop fighting.
To improve maternal health outcomes, our top priority needs to be improving care access, quality, and experience - and one of the most effective ways to achieve these goals is protecting Medicaid. During the pandemic, Medicaid coverage grew by 15.7 million from 2020 to 2022, meaning more Americans, including mothers, had access to comprehensive health care coverage.
As we move into a post-pandemic emergency world, each state will re-evaluate who qualifies for Medicaid. We must ensure that those who are eligible can continue to be served by this essential program.
This Coalition is preparing ourselves to fight on behalf of the 87 million people who are currently enrolled in the program. We need to know, can we call on you to advocate for Medicaid when the time comes?
Thank you,
The Coalition to Protect America’s Health Care
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