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March of Dimes Hails Introduction of "Mothers and Newborns Health Insurance Act of 2001"
Washington, D.C. — The March of Dimes applauds introduction today of the "Mothers and Newborns Health Insurance Act of 2001" (S. 724) in the U.S. Senate. The bill, authored by Senators Christopher Bond (R-Mo.) and John Breaux (D-La.), will permit states to cover low-income, uninsured pregnant women through the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP).
"The March of Dimes commends Senators Bond and Breaux for their long standing commitment to improving the health status of pregnant women and their babies," said Dr. Jennifer Howse (pronounced HOUSE), president of the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation. Research funded by the March of Dimes shows pregnant women continue to go without insurance and needed medical services. S. 724 builds on these research findings and proposes that states be given the flexibility to cover prenatal care for income-eligible pregnant women age 19 and older through S-CHIP.
"The March of Dimes is particularly pleased to see that the bill introduced by Senators Bond and Breaux includes several key provisions that would, if enacted, improve the health of mothers and children by providing greater access to prenatal care," said Dr. Howse. "Access to health coverage is one of the Foundation’s legislative priorities for 2001," she added.
She also points out that these provisions will:
- Allow states the flexibility to use federal S-CHIP dollars to provide prenatal coverage to income eligible uninsured pregnant women age 19 and older who are currently without health insurance.
- Permit states to use "presumptive eligibility" to quickly get needed prenatal care to enrollees. Lack of insurance can be a significant barrier to prenatal care, and infants born to mothers receiving no prenatal care or beginning prenatal care late are about twice as likely to be low birthweight as those born to mothers receiving early prenatal care. Moreover, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality low birth-weight/pre-maturity is one of the three most expensive reasons for a hospital stay in the United States.
- Automatically enroll infants born to mothers covered through S-CHIP to prevent a gap in health coverage.
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