Resources to Help States Improve Access to High-Quality Care for Women
Health care needs and services often differ across populations. Women are no exception. Women are more likely than men to suffer from multiple chronic conditions across physical and behavioral health. Many women also become pregnant and give birth over their lifetime, often requiring access to targeted maternity and reproductive health services. Depending on a woman’s race, ethnicity, age, socioeconomic status, or other factors, she may experience additional challenges to equitable access to appropriate and culturally congruent care. This resource page provides innovative policy options and approaches for states interested in improving access to high-quality health care for women. The resources focus on specific health needs a woman may experience over the life course, including general health care access and quality, reproductive health, maternal health, and behavioral health.
- Learn about state health policy resources to promote Black maternal health and equity here.
- Learn about NASHP’s Maternal and Child Health Policy Innovation Program Policy Academy focusing on maternal mortality here.
- Learn about resources to help states improve integrated care for pregnant and parenting women here.
Women’s Health Care Access and Quality
Maternal Health
- Four State Strategies to Employ Doulas to Improve Maternal Health and Birth Outcomes in Medicaid
- How New York Is Safeguarding Pregnant Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic
- NASHP Roundtable: Georgia and Illinois Work to Improve Maternal Health Outcomes
- New Jersey Medicaid Implements New Policies to Improve Maternal Health
- State Maternal Mortality Review Committee Membership and Recommendations
- State Strategies to Address the Black Maternal Health Crisis
- State Team-Based Care Strategies for Medicaid-Eligible Women
- States Use CHIP Health Services Initiatives to Support Home Visiting Programs
Behavioral Health/Substance Use Disorder
- How States Promote Recovery for Pregnant and Parenting Women with Substance Use Disorder
- Maryland’s Family Recovery Courts: Successfully Reuniting Families with the Help of Customized Substance Use Disorder Treatment
- State Medicaid Policies for Maternal Depression Screening During Well-Child Visits
- State Medicaid Strategies to Promote Early Identification and Treatment of Pregnant Women with Substance Use Disorder
- Virginia Advances Integrated Care for Pregnant and Parenting Women with Substance Use Disorder
For individuals living with complex, often chronic conditions, and their families, palliative care can provide relief from symptoms, improve satisfaction and outcomes, and help address critical mental and spiritual needs during difficult times. Now more than ever, there is growing recognition of the importance of palliative care services for individuals with serious illness, such as advance care planning, pain and symptom management, care coordination, and team-based, multi-disciplinary support. These services can help patients and families cope with the symptoms and stressors of disease, better anticipate and avoid crises, and reduce unnecessary and/or unwanted care. While this model is grounded in evidence that demonstrates improved quality of life, better outcomes, and reduced cost for patients, only a fraction of individuals who could benefit from palliative care receive it. 
