Despite some recent improvements in maternal mortality – which, to be clear, did not extend to Black women – the United States continues to be the most dangerous wealthy country for giving birth, and large proportions of childbearing families still lack the support they need to thrive. CMS’s recently launched Transforming Maternal Health, or TMaH (“tee-mah”), model is a comprehensive framework for addressing this crisis. TMaH offers a roadmap for all states and stakeholders to advance maternal health, whether or not they formally participate in this ten-year Innovation Center program.
Recognizing the transformational potential of the TMaH framework, the National Partnership for Women & Families released a playbook to support all state Medicaid agencies and their partners in successfully implementing the model elements that will improve outcomes for moms and babies. The playbook provides implementers with the “why” and the “how” of both mandatory and optional TMaH elements – including concrete checklists, specific resources, and the evidence about their value. The playbook can be used by various stakeholders working with state Medicaid agencies to transform maternity care, including CMS, state legislators, governors, Medicaid managed care health plans, community-based organizations, birth justice leaders and other advocates, clinical provider groups, hospitals and birth centers, perinatal quality collaboratives, philanthropy, and journalists.
Continue reading this blog post at Health Affairs Forefront.
Attribution: Carol Sakala and Megan Burns, CMS’s Transforming Maternal Health Model: A Roadmap For States, Health Affairs Forefront, May 7, 2025, https://www.healthaffairs.org/content/forefront/cms-s-transforming-maternal-health-model-roadmap-states
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