Amid a persistent maternal mortality crisis in the United States, substance use is one of the most pronounced issues facing those who have recently given birth and other caregivers in Pennsylvania.Interviews PolicyLab conducted with key stakeholders and caregivers in recovery across…

To access the commentary, click here.The U.S. is confronting a perinatal mental health crisis rooted in policies and endemic racism that have significant negative impact on perinatal women and people, especially those from racial-ethnic minoritized backgrounds. This…

Since 2016, enactment of more punitive immigration policies resulted in more people avoiding health care and other public services in the U.S. Passage of policies such as the 2019 “public charge” rule change, which expanded the rules by which immigrants could be denied access to…

Introduction: Perinatal palliative care (PPC) is a rapidly growing and essential reproductive health care option for pregnant persons with a diagnosed life-limiting fetal condition who continue their pregnancy. The provision of PPC is within the scope of basic midwifery…

Research design: Community-engaged qualitative study using inductive thematic analysis of semistructured interviews.Objective: To understand Latine immigrants' recent prenatal care experiences and develop community-informed strategies to mitigate policy-related chilling…

PolicyLab responded to a request for comment from the Pennsylvania Bureau of WIC on the 2025 WIC State Plan of Program Operation and Administration.In their response, PolicyLab experts offered recommendations to help increase uptake rates in Pennsylvania’s WIC program and to lower…

IMPORTANCE: Immigrant birthing people have lower rates of preterm birth compared with their US-born counterparts. This advantage and associated racial and ethnic disparities across the gestational age spectrum have not been examined nationally. OBJECTIVE: To examine associations of…

 Fetal care centers (FCCs) in the U.S. lack a standardized instrument to measure person-centered care. This study aimed to develop and validate the Person-Centered Care in Fetal Care Centers (PCC-FCC) Scale. Initial items were developed based on literature and input from…

Physically or psychologically distressing birth experiences can influence postpartum health, parenting efficacy, and future pregnancy plans. Communication deficits contribute to negative birth experiences. This qualitative analysis explored themes related to communication and negative…

There are gaps in receipt of maternal preventive services in the interconception period. Yet mother–infant dyads have frequent health care visits. Health systems have opportunities to better capitalize on existing visits to address dyad needs, but this possibility has not been fully…