The Maternal Health Hub released “Using Managed Care Organization Contracts as a Lever to Address Health Equity in Maternity Care” which describes innovative ways states are using the Medicaid Managed Care contracting process to address health equity overall, including to improve equity and close gaps in outcomes for maternity care.
The brief highlights efforts undertaken by Michigan, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, and Minnesota to leverage the MCO contracting process to push for inclusion of community voices in developing programs and policies, implementation of and investment in antiracist practices, and engagement in actions to reduce inequities in maternity care. The brief also shares additional ways in which states could drive Medicaid support for the community-based model of maternity care, to create sustainable funding that improves access to doulas, midwives, and free-standing birth centers.
The Maternal Health Hub (the Hub) is run by the Health Care Transformation Task Force and supported by the Commonwealth Fund. The Hub leads a monthly Learning Community webinar series to identify and share learnings on essential components of equitable payment approaches that improve maternity care outcomes and lowers costs; if you are interested in joining, please sign up here.