Improving Access to Maternity Care Act
This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Health Resources and Services Administration to designate maternity care health professional shortage areas and review these designations at least annually.
The Department of Health and Human Services must collect and publish data on health professional shortage areas so availability of maternal health professionals can be compared by professional category and geographic region.
A maternity care health professional shortage area is: (1) an area determined to have a shortage of providers of full scope maternity care health services or of hospital or birth center labor and delivery units, or (2) a population group determined to have a shortage of such providers or facilities.
Full scope maternity care health services include care during labor, birthing, prenatal care, and postpartum care.