Sec. 1105. Task force on birthing experience and safe, respectful, responsive, and empowering maternity care during public health emergencies
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The Secretary, in consultation with the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, shall convene a task force (in this subsection referred to as the Task Force ) to develop Federal recommendations regarding respectful, responsive, and empowering maternity care, including safe birth care and postpartum care, during public health emergencies. The Task Force shall develop, publicly post, and update Federal recommendations in multiple languages to ensure high-quality, nondiscriminatory maternity care, promote positive birthing experiences, and improve maternal health outcomes during public health emergencies, with a particular focus on outcomes for individuals from demographic groups with elevated rates of maternal mortality, severe maternal morbidity, maternal health disparities, or other adverse perinatal or childbirth outcomes.
Such recommendations shall— address, with particular attention to ensuring equitable treatment on the basis of race and ethnicity— measures to facilitate respectful, responsive, and empowering maternity care; measures to facilitate telehealth maternity care for pregnant individuals who cannot regularly access in-person care; strategies to increase access to specialized care for those with high-risk pregnancies or pregnant individuals with elevated risk factors; diagnostic testing for pregnant and laboring patients; birthing without one’s chosen companions, with one’s chosen companions, and with smartphone or other telehealth connection to one’s chosen companions; newborn separation after birth in relation to maternal infection status; breast milk feeding in relation to maternal infection status; licensure, training, scope of practice, and Medicaid and other insurance reimbursement for certified midwives, certified nurse-midwives, and certified professional midwives, who meet, at a minimum, the international definition of a midwife and global standards for midwifery education, as established by the International Confederation of Midwives, in a manner that facilitates inclusion of midwives of color and midwives from underserved communities; financial support and training for perinatal health workers who provide nonclinical support to individuals from pregnancy through the postpartum period in a manner that facilitates inclusion from underserved communities; strategies to ensure and expand doula coverage under State Medicaid programs; how to identify, address, and treat prenatal and postpartum mental and behavioral health conditions, such as anxiety, substance use disorder, and depression, during public health emergencies; how to identify and address instances of intimate partner violence during pregnancy which may arise or intensify during public health emergencies; strategies to address hospital capacity concerns in communities with a surge in infectious disease cases and to provide childbearing individuals with options that reduce the potential for cross-contamination and increase the ability to implement their care preferences while maintaining safety and quality, such as the use of freestanding birth centers; provision of child care services during prenatal and postpartum appointments for mothers whose children are unable to attend as a result of restrictions relating to the public health emergencies; how to identify and address racism, bias, and discrimination in the delivery of maternity care services to pregnant and postpartum individuals, including evaluating the value of training for hospital staff on implicit bias and racism, respectful, responsive, and empowering maternity care, and demographic data collection; how to address the needs of undocumented pregnant individuals and new mothers who may be afraid or unable to seek needed care during the COVID–19 public health emergency; how to address the needs of uninsured and underinsured pregnant individuals who have historically relied on emergency departments for care; how to identify pregnant and postpartum individuals at risk for depression, anxiety disorder, psychosis, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and other maternal mood disorders before, during, and after pregnancy, and how to treat those diagnosed with a prenatal or postpartum mood disorder; how to effectively and compassionately screen for substance use disorder during pregnancy and postpartum and help pregnant and postpartum individuals find support and effective treatment; how to ensure access to infant nutrition during public health emergencies; and such other matters as the Task Force determines appropriate; identify barriers to the implementation of the recommendations; take into consideration existing State and other programs that have demonstrated effectiveness in addressing pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care during public health emergencies; and identify policies specific to public health emergencies that should be discontinued when safely possible and those that should be continued as the public health emergency abates.
The Secretary shall appoint the members of the Task Force. Such members shall be comprised of— representatives of the Department of Health and Human Services, including representatives of— the Secretary; the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration; the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services; the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; the Commissioner of Food and Drugs; the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use; and the Director of the Indian Health Service; at least 3 State, local, or territorial public health officials representing departments of public health, who shall represent jurisdictions from different regions of the United States with relatively high concentrations of historically marginalized populations; at least 1 Tribal public health official representing departments of public health; 1 or more representatives of community-based organizations that address adverse maternal health outcomes with a specific focus on racial and ethnic inequities in maternal health outcomes, with special consideration given to representatives of such organizations that are led by a person of color or from communities with significant minority populations; a professionally diverse panel of maternity care providers and perinatal health workers; 1 or more patients who were pregnant or gave birth during the COVID–19 public health emergency or a subsequent public health emergency; 1 or more patients who have received support from a perinatal health worker; and racially and ethnically diverse representation from at least 3 independent experts with knowledge or field experience with racial and ethnic disparities in public health, women’s health, or maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity.