Examining Differences in Maternal Care of Women with Medicaid vs. Private Insurance: Phase 1

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the United States has the highest maternal mortality rate of any developed country in the world, with 26.4 deaths for every 100,000 live births. The prevalence in Connecticut is 19.0 deaths per 100,000 live births. Research has identified factors contributing to the high maternal mortality rate in the U.S; however, it is less clear whether these factors also are at play in Connecticut. The number one contributing factor to high maternal mortality rates is access to insurance or lack thereof. Less access to insurance leads to diminished access to prenatal care, which can further adverse health effects for pregnant and postpartum women. This project aims to compare maternal pre and postpartum care for individuals on Medicaid versus private insurance in Connecticut for women of all ages that have experienced birth in the last 12 months. The methodology of this project involves a two-step process. The first step will be interviewing approximately five YWCA partners to ascertain their perspectives on critical care needed for a healthy pregnancy. The second step will be to conduct focus groups of women identified by the YWCA partners. The results obtained from the focus groups will help to develop a series of recommendations for the YWCA as it develops its policies to address gaps in service that limit women in having equitable care