Must-Reads in Maternal Mental Health from 2025
Not even ten years ago, maternal mental health was a topic in the margins—barely discussed in our communities and rarely covered by national news.
Today, the topic of maternal mental health regularly reaches the mainstream, helping to raise awareness, drive research, and push people of power and influence to create solutions that address this issue.
In this article, our Executive Director, Adrienne Griffen, MPP, shares her must-reads from this year.
*Listed in alphabetical order.*
Access in Brief: Postpartum Mental Health in Medicaid
Medicaid plays a critical role in providing maternity-related services for pregnant women: Medicaid finances more than 40% of all births in the United States and is the single largest payer of behavioral health care.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued guidance describing how states can provide Medicaid coverage for maternal or caregiver depression screenings during a well-child visit. Almost all state Medicaid agencies cover postpartum depression screenings and treatment.
This brief identifies several differences in population characteristics, as well as postpartum health care access and utilization between postpartum Medicaid beneficiaries with and without mental health conditions.
How Los Angeles Community Clinics Use the Collaborative Care Model to Improve Maternal Mental Health
The Collaborative Care Model (CoCM) is an evidence-based approach that integrates primary care with behavioral health services through a coordinated, multidisciplinary framework.
In Los Angeles County, a 5-year initiative is deploying the CoCM to ensure that mothers receive timely and appropriate mental health care throughout the perinatal period.
Four cohorts of Los Angeles Federally Qualified Health Centers—reaching over 300 mothers across the county—are receiving implementation support through the initiative, with ongoing sustainability work to ensure that integrated mental health care for mothers continues.
March of Dimes 2025 Report Card
The 2025 March of Dimes Report Card highlights the many factors contributing to maternal and infant mortality and morbidity across the United States, including Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico.
For the fourth consecutive year, the United States earned a D+ grade for preterm birth, marking the longest stretch of the lowest grade in Report Card history. Behind that static letter grade lies a troubling truth: our nation remains stuck in a maternal and infant health crisis.
In 2024, nearly 380,000 babies were born preterm (1 in 10 births) placing the United States among the highest rates in developed nations. Progress is not reaching the families who need it most.
Maternal Mental Health Bill Will Improve Force Readiness
Maternal mental health conditions impact our nation’s military mothers (both active duty as well as their spouses / beneficiaries) at 2-3 times the rate of their civilian counterparts.
To better support maternal mental health in the military, the Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance (MMHLA) helped pass The Maintaining our Obligation to Moms who Serve (MOMS) Act, which mandates the implementation of a maternal mental health program into the military healthcare system.
New York State Releases Landmark Maternal Mental Health Policy Roadmap
In a major step forward for maternal mental health policy, the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) has released a comprehensive 128-page report detailing actionable recommendations, systemic challenges, and aspirational goals to improve mental health outcomes for birthing persons across the state.
Developed by an interdisciplinary Maternal Mental Health Workgroup mandated by the 2023–2024 state budget, the report offers a two-year blueprint for reform grounded in equity, cultural humility, and lived experience.
Parental Mental Health and Postpartum Care in Colorado: 2019-2023
New findings from the Colorado Perinatal Care Quality Collaborative (CPCQC) reveal both progress and persistent gaps in mental health and postpartum care during the perinatal period.
Although signs of progress include increased screening, earlier postpartum follow-up, and greater use of mental health services, 1 in 3 Colorado births involved someone with a diagnosed mental health condition and 2 in 3 postpartum individuals with a mental health diagnosis did not receive any mental health services during or after pregnancy.
Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health 2025 State Report Cards
These State Report Cards provide a comprehensive view into maternal mental health in America. The United States has made incremental progress, with an overall grade of a C-, improving slightly from a D+ in 2024.
The report card grades states in three domains: 1) providers and programs; 2) screening and screening reimbursement; and 3) insurance coverage and treatment—providing points for each of 20 measures within these domains.
No states earned an A, while 19 states earned either a D or an F.
Postpartum Psychosis and Bipolar Disorder: Review of Neurobiology and Expert Consensus Statement on Classification
Co-authored by over 20 experts in perinatal mental health, this consensus article provides detailed information about postpartum psychosis as one of the most distinct clinical phenotypes in psychiatry due to its characteristic rapid onset, severity, phenomenology, treatment response, and prognosis.
The authors recommend classifying postpartum psychosis as a distinct category within the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5) and the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11).
Pregnancy-Related Deaths: Data from Maternal Mortality Review Committees
Maternal Mortality Review Committees (MMRCs) are multidisciplinary committees that convene at the state or local level to comprehensively review deaths during or within a year of pregnancy (pregnancy-associated deaths).
MMRCs have access to clinical and non-clinical information (e.g. vital records, medical records, and social service records) to more fully understand the circumstances surrounding each death, determine whether the death was pregnancy-related, and develop recommendations for action to prevent similar deaths in the future.
This report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) gathers and shares data about maternal deaths in 2021 as reported by 46 state MMRCs.
Roadmap for Evaluating Perinatal Psychiatry Access Programs
This roadmap is the product of years of evaluation of Perinatal Psychiatry Access Programs (hereafter Access Programs) and reflects partnerships with numerous Access Program teams through the Lifeline for Moms National Network of Perinatal Psychiatry Access Programs.
Access Programs expand access to care by providing (1) education and toolkits to frontline providers; (2) psychiatry consultation via telephone; (3) resources and referrals; and (4) technical assistance.
The Roadmap outlines recommendations for assessing the impact of Access Programs and the services they provide.
Task-sharing and Telemedicine Delivery of Psychotherapy to Treat Perinatal Depression: A Pragmatic, Noninferiority Randomized Trial
Task-sharing and telemedicine can increase access to effective psychotherapies.
Scaling Up Maternal Mental healthcare by Increasing access to Treatment (SUMMIT) is a pragmatic, multisite, noninferiority, four-arm trial that tested the noninferiority of providers (non-specialist vs. specialist providers) and modality (telemedicine vs. in-person) in delivering psychotherapy for perinatal depressive symptoms.
This trial suggests compelling evidence for task-sharing and telemedicine to improve access to psychotherapies for perinatal depression and anxiety symptoms.
More Than Blue: Documentary Movie
More Than Blue is a powerful documentary that sheds light on perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, sharing the real stories of families navigating these challenges.
Through expert insights and personal experiences, the film aims to raise awareness, reduce stigma, and highlight the importance of comprehensive mental health care during pregnancy and the postpartum period.
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