Table 2.

Brief overview of selected US health policy initiatives to improve access to health care in the postpartum period.

Overarching aim	Name	Policy description and potential impact
Medicaid expansion and extending Medicaid coverage to one-year postpartum	Affordable Care Act 2014 Medicaid Expansion	State-dependent Medicaid expansion for adults at or below 138 percent of the federal poverty level and extended insurance eligibility preconception and 60 days postpartum; several studies have found that ACA Medicaid expansion increased postpartum Medicaid enrollment100
	American Rescue Plan Act of 2021	COVID-19 relief package facilitating the extension of pregnancy-related Medicaid coverage from 60 days to 1 year postpartum;101 supports continuity of insurance coverage postpartum
Addressing racial disparities in maternal health	Preventing Maternal Death Acts of 2018	Authorizes $12 million a year in funds for 5 years for states to establish and financially support maternal mortality review committees; facilitates investigation of maternal deaths via review and the collection of data to study maternal mortality causes and avenues for prevention102
	Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants Early (PREEMIE) Reauthorization Act of 2018	Aims to address birth outcome disparities among Black individuals; helps provide funding for federal services and research on preterm neonates and their families to close existing racial equity gaps in obstetric and postpartum health103
	Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act of 2021	Aims to address racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes and mortality with 12 standalone bills with goals such as improving data collection, investing in digital healthcare, and funding community-based initiatives104,105
State-specific policy initiatives for advancing maternal and child health	An Act Improving the Quality of Health Care and Reducing Costs through Increased Transparency, Efficiency, and Innovation 2012 (Massachusetts)	Aims to control healthcare costs via the adoption of novel delivery system and payment models, investments in preventive care programs, and implementation of assessment measures to ensure the quality of health care services106
	California Pregnancy Associated Mortality Review (CA-PAMR)	Funded by the California Department of Public Health and Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Title V Maternal and Child Health Block Grant, the review committee that uses a mixed-methods approach for the investigation of maternal deaths in order to inform future prevention strategies and policies; promotes improved accuracy for identifying the cause of pregnancy-related deaths associated with racial disparities and further insight into cardiovascular disease as one of the primary causes of pregnancy-related mortality107

COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019.