Health Care

Red state efforts to combat maternal mortality at risk

They stand to lose if Congress eventually cuts Medicaid spending to help finance tax cuts.
Dr. Jacob Lenz performs an ultrasound at the Oklahoma State University obstetrics and gynecology clinic in Tulsa, Okla., on Tuesday, July 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Mary Conlon)

Red states grappling with a maternal mortality crisis have turned to Medicaid to help low-income residents deliver healthy babies, putting the states on a fiscal collision course with potentially steep federal budget cuts.

They’ve passed dozens of bills in recent years that make it easier for pregnant women to qualify for the government health insurance program, using it to pay for services such as doulas, take-home monitoring devices, and to keep coverage for up to a year after giving birth. 

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