{"id":9083,"date":"2026-04-03T06:00:03","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T11:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/03\/health-care-bill-approved-by-missouri-house-includes-expansion-of-doula-services\/"},"modified":"2026-04-03T06:00:03","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T11:00:03","slug":"health-care-bill-approved-by-missouri-house-includes-expansion-of-doula-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/03\/health-care-bill-approved-by-missouri-house-includes-expansion-of-doula-services\/","title":{"rendered":"Health care bill approved by Missouri House includes expansion of doula services"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Christian King, a doula with Uzazi Village in Kansas City, wraps Mikia Marshall, 33, with a kanga cloth to help take pressure off her stomach on Feb. 27, 2024 (Anna Spoerre\/Missouri Independent).<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A wide-ranging <\/span>health care bill <\/span><\/a>that includes a provision expanding doula services for low-income families across the state passed out of the Missouri House on Thursday.<\/span><\/p>\n

The legislation, sponsored by state Rep. Tara Peters, a Rolla Republican, would expand coverage of doula support for women enrolled in the state\u2019s Medicaid program from six to 16 visits covering pregnancy, birth, postpartum and lactation support.<\/span><\/p>\n

State Rep. LaKeySha Bosley, a St. Louis Democrat who urged her colleagues to support the bill, said she\u2019s confident the doula provision will save women\u2019s lives. Doulas advocate for the physical and emotional wellbeing of mothers and families. They do not deliver babies.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis will assist women who are going through one of the proudest moments, potentially, of their lives, is becoming moms, make sure that they have an advocate with them as they\u2019re going through their birthing plan and doula services,\u201d she said Thursday.<\/span><\/p>\n

In late 2024, the Missouri Department of Social Services issued an <\/span>emergency rule authorizing Medicaid to reimburse doula services<\/span><\/a>, citing \u201can immediate danger to the public health, safety or welfare of pregnant women in Missouri.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Since the program\u2019s inception, more than <\/span>625 participants insured through Medicaid <\/span><\/a>accessed doulas during their pregnancy and postpartum, Baylee Watts, a spokeswoman for the Department of Social Services, said in March.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\u2018Shockingly unique\u2019: Why St. Louis program for antepartum moms is getting national attention<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Doulas have increasingly been cited as part of the solution to Missouri\u2019s poor maternal and infant birth outcomes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On average, around 70 women die each year in Missouri during childbirth or in the first year postpartum. Of those deaths, <\/span>80% were deemed preventable by the state.\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

In 2024, a year after Missouri expanded Medicaid coverage through the first year postpartum, 38% of births were covered by Medicaid. Several years ago, the state\u2019s Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review board assessed maternal deaths from 2017 to 2021 and found that women insured through Medicaid were <\/span>seven times more likely to die <\/span><\/a>within one year of pregnancy than their counterparts with private health insurance.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The board also found that Black women in Missouri were three times more likely to die within a year of pregnancy than white women. A recent <\/span>March of Dimes report gave Missouri a D- for preterm births, <\/span><\/a>and also pointed to doulas as a solution.<\/span><\/p>\n

The bill would also add coverage of childbirth education classes for families enrolled in the state\u2019s Show Me Healthy Babies program.<\/span><\/p>\n

The legislation, Peters said Thursday, \u201cis about getting government out of the way and letting our health care providers do what they do best: taking care of patients across the state of Missouri.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The legislation also aims to allow local hospitals to expand investment opportunities;\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n