Kansas’ Medicaid program adding coverage of doula services for women, newborns

Janet Stanek was sworn in Monday as the secretary of the Kansas Department of health and Environment. She has held the position in an interim role since November. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)

TOPEKA — The Medicaid program in Kansas will be amended July 1 to enable coverage of doula services useful in guiding and supporting women before giving birth and during postpartum months.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment said Medicaid beneficiaries would have access to these non-physician providers within the KanCare program. Doulas would offer physical, emotional and informational support to women and newborns.

“Doulas play a vital role in the health and well-being of mothers and their babies, and this coverage will ensure more families in Kansas can benefit from their services,” said Janet Stanek, the KDHE secretary.

KDHE said Medicaid beneficiaries in Kansas would be in line to receive personalized care from doulas specializing in prenatal, labor, delivery and postpartum issues. This initiative was part of a broader effort in Kansas that previously led to expansion of access to Medicaid for up to 12 months after a pregnancy.

Oklahoma and nearly a dozen other states previously tapped into Medicaid for doula care.

The State Academy of Public Health Policy reported doulas could partially address maternal mortality rates in the United States and the racial, ethnic and socioeconomic disparities associated with birth outcomes.

“Current evidence suggests that pregnant people who receive doula care are more likely to have a healthy birth outcome and a positive birth experience,” the Academy of Public Health Policy says. “States are increasingly seeking federal authorization to provide doula services as an optional benefit under their state Medicaid programs.”

In Kansas, 5.2% of every 1,000 children born died before their first birthday in 2021. In 2017, the state’s infant mortality rate was 6.3 deaths per 1,000 live births.

One in 13, or 7.8%, of babies born in Kansas during 2022 had low birthweights and one in 10 babies, or 10.5%, were born before reaching full term.

Christine Osterlund, KDHE deputy secretary for Medicaid, told state legislators the agency was striving to improve statistics relative to at-risk mothers by pivoting to doulas. She said the agency would seek other avenues for improving maternal health through collaborations with managed-care companies coordinating Medicaid.

“We’re asking our MCO partnerrs to look more (at) value-added benefits for our maternal moms and babies,” Osterlund said. “We know we have a deficit around postpartum screenings.”

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