The Perinatal Workforce Act establishes grant programs and national initiatives to grow, diversify, and train a culturally competent maternal health workforce to improve health equity and patient outcomes.
Gwen Moore
Representative
WI-4
The Perinatal Workforce Act aims to improve maternal health outcomes by expanding and diversifying the perinatal health workforce. The bill establishes grant programs to support training for midwives, nurses, and other perinatal health workers, with a focus on recruiting individuals from underserved and minority communities. Additionally, it mandates national campaigns, federal coordination, and research to promote culturally congruent care and address systemic barriers to maternal health access.
New Perinatal Workforce Act to Infuse $130M into Doula, Midwifery, and Nursing Training to Tackle Maternal Health Gaps
The Perinatal Workforce Act is a direct response to the maternal health crisis, aiming to flood the healthcare system with a more diverse and better-trained workforce. By authorizing over $130 million in grants through 2031, the bill focuses on expanding the ranks of doulas, midwives, and specialized nurses. The goal isn't just more bodies in the room, but a specific kind of care: the bill mandates that training include 'culturally and linguistically congruent care' and implicit bias training. This means if you’re a pregnant person in a rural area or a minority community, the bill aims to ensure your provider actually understands your background and speaks your language, literally and figuratively.
Boosting the Birth Team
Section 1 and Section 3 of the bill create a massive pipeline for non-traditional maternal health roles. Instead of just focusing on MDs, the government is putting money toward training physician assistants, doulas, and lactation consultants. For a student in a medically underserved town, this could mean a full-ride scholarship or a stipend to attend a midwifery program (Section 3). The bill specifically prioritizes schools that recruit students from minority groups and those who plan to practice in 'shortage areas'—the places where it’s currently a two-hour drive to the nearest labor and delivery ward.
Nursing and Knowledge Upgrades
Section 4 shifts the focus to the nursing backbone of the system, offering grants specifically for nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists focusing on maternal health. It’s not just about tuition; it’s about what they learn. Every program receiving these funds must bake anti-racism and health equity into the curriculum. For patients, this is designed to translate into 'respectful care'—a term the bill uses to describe a healthcare experience where the patient’s values and agency are prioritized, potentially reducing the high rates of maternal mortality seen in marginalized communities.
Mapping the Roadblocks
To make sure this isn't just a temporary cash injection, Section 5 tasks the GAO with a deep dive into why it’s so hard to become a midwife or doula in the first place. They’ll be looking at the 'barriers to entry' for low-income women and how insurance companies—both public and private—pay these workers. If you’ve ever wondered why your insurance covers a hospital birth but won’t pay for a doula, this report is intended to provide the data to change that. By requiring a public report every five years, the bill keeps the pressure on the government to fix the systemic issues that keep the maternal health workforce small and expensive.