University of Minnesota School of Public Health
Presentation Abstract
Policy To Improve Postpartum Health Equity
Half of all maternal deaths occur in the postpartum period, and limited access to care is a top contributor to postpartum maternal deaths. Rural residents face declining access to care, and racially minoritized rural communities are at greatest risk of losing access to maternity care services. Rural residents and racialized people are also over-represented among Medicaid beneficiaries, all of whom are low income.
This presentation will provide data on postpartum health at the confluence of racism, poverty, and geography, highlighting both access to care and content of care. Specifically, we examine severe maternal morbidity and mortality during childbirth hospitalization, the content of postpartum care, and maternity care availability in rural communities.
This presentation will also describe current policy initiatives designed to improve postpartum health and discuss the equity implications of efforts to improve access to care for people who give birth. Medicaid is the primary payer for nearly half of all births in the U.S. As such, state Medicaid programs have an opportunity to contribute to efforts to improve maternal health through reimbursement and coverage policies that address disproportionate risk among Medicaid beneficiaries as a whole, and among particular groups that experience heightened risks based on geography and race and ethnicity. This policy discussion will highlight current efforts and future directions to improve postpartum health equity across race and rurality.
About Ms. Interrante
Julia D. Interrante is a maternal health researcher and doctoral candidate in the Division of Health Policy and Management at the University of Minnesota, School of Public Health. She holds a B.A. in gender studies and international relations from the University of Virginia and an M.P.H. in epidemiology from Emory University. Her prior work as an epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention focused on gender disparities, maternal medication use, and disease surveillance and prevention in both the domestic and international context. She currently works as a quantitative researcher at the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center on a variety of maternity care projects. Her research examines the effects of reproductive health policies on maternal health outcomes, with specific focus on geographic and racial health equity as well as access to care, and includes topics such as disparities in severe maternal morbidity and mortality, changing access to rural maternity care, and the impact of payment policies on postpartum care.
Ms. Interrante did not disclose any conflicts of interest for this workshop.