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In July the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) announced new proposed rules and payments for Medicaid and Medicare providers and facilities.

This included a proposal for baseline health and safety requirements for hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs) for obstetric services. 

The new proposal, announced via press release on July 10, was informed by stakeholder input and requests for information in the full year (FY) 2023 and FY 2025 inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) proposed rules, included new requirements for maternal quality improvement including 

-baseline standards for the organization,

– staffing, 

– delivery of care within obstetric units, 

-emergency services readiness, 

-transfer protocols for obstetric patients, 

– annual staff training on evidence-based maternal health practices and cultural competencies, among other topics.

Additionally, under this proposal, hospitals would be required to:

  • Keep basic resuscitation equipment available in labor and delivery rooms, document maternal health training for staff, and have written policies for transferring patients to other facilities.
  • Have protocols and supplies for emergency deliveries in ERs — even if they don’t have an obstetrics unit.

CMS estimates it will cost the medical industry about $4.46 billion over 10 years to implement both programs — or about $70,671 per hospital per year.

In addition, also on July 10, the calendar year (CY) 2025 Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and  Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment System Proposed Rule (CMS 1809-P) was released.

In addition to proposing payment rates, this year’s rule includes proposed policies that align with several key administration goals, including addressing health disparities, expanding access to behavioral health care, improving transparency in the health system, and promoting safe, effective, and patient-centered care.

The proposed rule also addresses Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP) and Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHPs) as well as addressing the opioid addiction and overdose crisis by offering alternatives to pain management. 

Review the program’s fact sheet here.

Learn more about these two programs in the proposed rules here.

These proposals don’t directly impact maternal mental health, but do impact maternal health and mental health, and indirectly maternal mental health.  The Policy Center will continue to track updates when these requirements are finalized by CMS.