This report provides information on access to healthcare coverage during the postpartum period for underserved women, and provides recommendations for improving access to care, specifically through the Texas women’s health programs.
This report is a product of the Postpartum Access to Healthcare (PATH) Project, a study of the system and experience of care during the postpartum period for underserved women in Central Texas. PATH is a project of the Texas Collaborative for Healthy Mothers and Babies (TCHMB), the state perinatal quality collaborative, and is funded by the St. David’s Foundation.
Data sources for the PATH project and this report include interviews with 32 pregnant/postpartum women and with 20 providers and clinic staff who serve this population. Each woman was interviewed up to three times (late prenatal, 1-2 weeks postpartum, and 4-6 weeks postpartum). Qualitative interview data were supplemented with available quantitative data on Texas’ women’s health programs sourced from publicly-available Texas state agency documents. Participant recruitment was conducted in partnership with two large Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) systems in central Texas.
This study identified three key areas for action to increase access to public healthcare coverage for underserved women:
Close the information gaps among women, providers, and advocates regarding the Texas Family Planning Program and Healthy Texas Women and encourage provider participation.
Improve processes to facilitate women’s transition between Medicaid for Pregnant Women and Healthy Texas Women.
Bolster the Texas Family Planning Program to expand its reach and scale its impact.