Pressley and Booker reintroduce the MOMMIES Act to address maternal health disparities

Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) reintroduced the Maximizing Outcomes for Moms through Improving and Strengthening Medicaid Services (MOMMIES) Act in the aim to address ongoing racial disparities in maternal health and mortality rates.

The bill, initially introduced by the two lawmakers in 2019, would aim to make health care more affordable for pregnant women by extending Medicaid coverage for postpartum people to a full year instead of 60 days postpartum. childbirth and extending Medicaid coverage for pregnant women to outside services. pregnancy-related services.

The goal of the legislation is to help cap the percentage of pregnancy-related deaths. In the United States, more than 80 percent of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Despite this, black women who give birth are three times more likely to die from pregnancy problems than white women.

Members of Congress, including the Black Maternal Health Caucus, have been working to address these disparities for some time. The caucus was first formed in 2019 and has since worked to pass a package of 13 bills called the Momnibus Act.

“My paternal grandmother died in the 1950s while giving birth, and it is absolutely damning that decades later, the crisis of black maternal morbidity in America is still killing our loved ones and destabilizing our families,” said Pressley in a statement.

“As the Supreme Court’s cruel Dobbs decision only exacerbates this crisis, Congress must pass our bill to promote holistic, community-based approaches to maternity and postpartum care so that every pregnant person is treated with the dignity and respect she deserves during and after. their pregnancy,” she added, referring to the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade.

“Maternal health justice is a matter of racial justice and a matter of life and death, and we must make comprehensive, culturally congruent reproductive care a reality for all. »

In addition to Medicaid services, the MOMMIES Act aims to create and invest in culturally competent care.

The legislation calls for the establishment of medical nursing homes, birthing centers and health facilities in underserved communities with a racial equity lens and trauma-informed approach.

The MOMMIES Act would also direct Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to issue guidelines for community doula care.

“The United States spends more on health care than any other country, but we still have the highest maternal mortality rate among our peers,” Booker said.

“We must ensure that no person, regardless of their background, faces inequalities or disparities when accessing or receiving maternal care. This legislation is an important step toward reducing health disparities in our country and promoting equitable maternal health care for all.

The legislation has support from a host of advocacy groups, including the Black Mamas Matter Alliance, March of Dimes, and In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda.

Earlier this year, In Our Own Voice released its 2023 Black Reproductive Justice Policy Agenda, calling for prioritizing some of these issues. Regina Davis Moss, president and CEO of the organization, applauded Pressley and Booker for reintroducing the bill.

“Inspired by the reproductive justice framework, this bill is a critical step in ensuring that Black women, birthing people, and their babies can thrive during pregnancy and beyond,” Moss said.