skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Medicaid Expansion Aims to Help Virginia Mothers, Newborns

play audio
Play

Monday, July 11, 2022   

CORRECTION: This story has been updated to include the correct link to register for Medicaid in Virginia. (9:40 p.m. ET, Jul 11, 2022)


CORRECTION: The website where Virginians can register for Medicaid has been corrected. (8:45 p.m. MST, July 11, 2022)


New Virginia mothers now are eligible for up to a year of Medicaid support. It's a major expansion of the program, and advocates hope it will help reduce maternal mortality rates.

The new version of Virginia's Medicaid program has been in the works for years, and was first approved by state lawmakers in 2020.

Previously, most new mothers were only able to draw Medicaid benefits for two months after the birth of their child. But Sara Cariano, senior health policy analyst for the Virginia Poverty Law Center, said many postpartum issues take more than sixty days to appear.

"This really is going to enhance the care the mom can get, and make sure that - if she does need any kind of physical help, behavioral health, even dental health - she doesn't have interrupted care," said Cariano. "She can continue on with the same provider she had through her pregnancy."

According to a 2020 report by Virginia's Department of Medical Assistance Services, more than 60% of maternal deaths among women with a chronic health issue happen after the 43 day mark. The maternal mortality rate for Black Virginia mothers is more than double the rate of their white counterparts.

Folks can register for Medicaid online at commonhelp.virginia.gov.

Cariano said folks who already are enrolled in Medicaid and become pregnant are automatically enrolled in the 12 month pregnancy support program, and new mothers who lapsed out of the sixty day version of the program, but still fall within the one-year range, can reapply for benefits.

She said Enroll Virginia, a coalition of community organizations, can help folks navigate the process.

"If someone has applied and is having an issue with an application, we also do a lot of case help," said Cariano. "We do a lot of helping people navigate what can be a little bit of a complicated process for enrolling."

So long as they meet income restrictions, all legally residing non-citizens in Virginia also are eligible for the program. Cariano said all mothers, regardless of immigration status, are eligible for coverage during the pregnancy and for up to sixty days after the birth of their child.




get more stories like this via email
more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


Social Issues

play sound

Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

Social Issues

play sound

Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


The U.S. teaching workforce remains primarily white while the percentage of Black teachers has declined. However, the percentage of Asian and Latinx teachers is rising.(WavebreakMediaMicro/Adobestock)

Social Issues

play sound

Education advocates are calling on lawmakers to increase funding for programs to combat the teacher shortage. Around 37% of schools nationwide …

Environment

play sound

New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021