Everything we do at the Center for Transforming Lives is built around a two-generation model of service.
For employment services to be successful, we know that access to high quality child care must also be a part of the conversation. Conversely, it makes little sense to invest in early childhood education programming and then send children home every afternoon to a mother who is unhoused, struggling with her mental health, or facing eviction. For that reason, our case managers and family advocates provide robust wraparound services that look at the needs of the family as a whole.
Unfortunately, public policy often fails in this regard. One glaring example of this is the Medicaid coverage for pregnancy in Texas. Uninsured women may qualify for coverage during their pregnancy to help support a healthy pregnancy and delivery, but those benefits end just 60 days post-partum. The maternal mortality rate in Texas is higher than the national average and one third of maternal deaths in Texas occur between 43 days and one year after pregnancy.
Conditions like post-partum depression (PPD), which can appear days or months after delivery, may also go untreated if coverage is discontinued. PPD affects as many as 1 in 7 women and can impact a woman’s ability to care for herself and her baby.
Healthy babies need healthy moms to thrive. You can celebrate Mother’s Day this year with a small gift of your time. Contact your legislators and tell them that that you support HB 133, which seeks to extend pregnancy Medicaid coverage to a full year after a delivery or miscarriage. This legislation has been introduced in previous legislative sessions, but has never passed. It seems to have some momentum this session, having passed out of the House and moving to the Senate.
You can help support mothers throughout Texas by helping to get it across the finish line this May.
