Texas expands care for new moms, but here’s more we can do to stop maternal mortality | Opinion
Give credit where credit is due: The Legislature stepped up and, in a rare show of bipartisan support, made it clear that the health of women and their babies is a Texas priority.
Crucial legislation designed to curtail maternal mortality, House Bill 12, passed overwhelmingly and is awaiting the governor’s signature and, ultimately, approval from the federal government’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
We should be proud of the leadership from our Tarrant County delegation. With all the hyperpartisan rhetoric at the Capitol, our leaders in the House and Senate opted for frank, open conversations on the health and safety of mothers and their babies.
HB 12 takes a small but important step toward addressing the crisis by extending Medicaid coverage for qualifying mothers from two to 12 months postpartum. That increase can be transformative by providing critical opportunities for prenatal care and postpartum checkups, family planning education, and necessary prescriptions.
Research has shown that limiting access to Medicaid, the state-federal program for low-income Americans, increased the threat to mothers and babies.
Here are sobering reminders of why the maternal health crisis requires decisive action:
Maternal mortality among American women has risen by 75% in the past 20 years, according to the World Health Organization.
Texas ranks among the bottom 10 states for the rate of maternal mortality.
Tarrant County’s maternal death rate is higher than the state average, with 25.4 deaths per 100,000 live births.
In addition, the December 2022 Texas Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Biennial Report found that 90% of pregnancy-related deaths could have been prevented. Women of color are in disproportionate danger — Tarrant County, for example, has the second-highest maternal mortality rate in the state for Black women.
We should all be able to agree — these numbers and outcomes are unacceptable.
In 2021, the House passed a similar bill, but the Senate voted to limit coverage to six months. That extension got mired in the process of federal approval, which meant that vulnerable mothers and their babies spent more time lost in the ongoing crisis.
Now, we must not squander the positive momentum for Texas moms.
No single program can solve the maternal health crisis our communities are facing. Without question, we won’t get better care or better outcomes until we have expanded access to benefits and more education and increased financial support for community programs designed to assist mothers and their babies.
I know these support systems — and the partnership between our public, private, and nonprofit sectors — can work because I’ve seen them in action.
When I was mayor, encouraging healthier choices in all aspects of life was a community priority. Health education is a tenet of the Blue Zones Project and the reason we launched FitWorth. Fort Worth’s current leaders and the nonprofit community continue to prioritize these efforts today.
But we still need more funding for programs such as the United Way of Tarrant County’s Community Doula initiative, which launched this year to reduce maternal mortality rates, particularly among low-income women and women of color. They will train 120 women and 30 hospital staffers as doulas who will provide peer assistance with nonclinical physical, emotional, and informational support from early pregnancy to postpartum.
The program, currently supported by pandemic-recovery funds administered by Tarrant County, is fostering collaboration between neighborhoods and our hospital systems to bridge a trust and educational divide. Proven community builders like United Way rely on meaningful gifts to scale their programs.
We also need to raise awareness about resources available from JPS Health Network, such as Women & Infants Services, OB Triage for urgent medical care, and advanced care for mothers and newborns with special needs.
And we must continue open conversations about Medicaid access to ensure that the nearly 500,000 Texas women who enroll each year understand that they can soon take advantage of 12 months of coverage, not two
We must grow programs like these today to keep women and young families educated, engaged and, quite simply, alive. The Legislature has proved that when it comes to moms and their babies, it doesn’t have to be divisive.
