Did you know…?

• Pregnancy related death rates for Black mothers in California are 4x the state average
• Compared with the average rate, Black babies are more than twice as likely to die

What does the new Momnibus Act do?

• It requires Medi-Cal to now cover doula care services. This is brand new. Before this bill passed, people would have to pay out-of-pocket if they wanted the support of a doula during or after pregnancy, which made this kind of care inaccessible for a lot of low-income families. Doulas can offer unique, culturally appropriate support that improves the health of mothers and babies– so it was really important for us to make sure all communities got access to this kind of care. 

• It requires Medi-Cal to cover maternal health care for 12 months postpartum (in other words, for one year after the baby is born). Before this bill, Medi-Cal coverage only extended 60 days after birth– so this is a big improvement.

• It gives eligible pregnant people earlier access to CalWORKs aid. Now, folks can have access to this support at once pregnancy status is confirmed/verified.  

• It gives eligible pregnant people an increase in their CalWORKs pregnancy supplement. Before this bill passed, eligible people received $47 to support them during pregnancy. Now, that amount has been increased to $100. This reflects the high costs of living in our state, and means that families can focus on their new baby and worry less about having enough money to cover their basic needs.

• It requires our state to empower a committee of community members and health care professionals to collect data and examine the role of racial disparities in maternal deaths and severe injury. This committee will then make recommendations for reducing racial and other disparities so that all mothers and babies get the care they deserve.

• It aims to expand the midwifery workforce by incentivizing midwifery schools to recruit from underrepresented populations. This is important because it means pregnant women will get care from professionals who reflect their own communities and cultures.

When do the Momnibus benefits kick in? 

Not all benefits will start at the same time. This is common when new laws are passed, because it takes some time for the state to figure out how to implement the changes. The extra CalWORKS supplement will hopefully go into effect on May 1, 2022. It may be a bit longer before Medi-Cal starts covering doula services. There are some administrative pieces to put in place before this program can go live, but we are hoping that folks will have access to doulas starting in July, 2022. 

Who will be eligible for these benefits? 

Different components of the bill will affect different groups of people. Anyone who is pregnant and covered by Medi-Cal will have access to doula care. Several factors are considered for CalWORKS eligibility. It is not just one minimum income amount. Factors considered include income, family size and dependents, and pregnancy and employment status. For more information, visit the CalWORKS website. If you think you’re eligible for benefits under a certain program, we recommend contacting that program directly to make sure you qualify.

Why is data collection important? 

Data collection is important for gaining a more accurate understanding of any issue. Data provides evidence of a problem, which means that it is more likely to be recognized as a problem and receive the attention and resources needed to fix it. 

What is Doula Care?

Doulas are trained people, usually women, who support mothers during pregnancy and after childbirth. Doulas are not medical professionals, but they can play an important role in the birthing process by providing coaching and emotional support, and advocating for mamas to have the best experience possible. 

What is Medi-Cal?

Medi-Cal is our state health insurance program. Many low-income people and families qualify for this program. The threshold to qualify is an annual income of less than $17,774 for an individual, or $36,570 for a family of four. 

What is CalWORKs?

CalWORKs is a state program that provides cash assistance and services to eligible families that have at least one child in the home. Families are able to receive both short-term and long-term support, including money each month to help pay for housing, food, and other basic things. 

Where can I go to learn more?

This is a brand new bill, so information about how it’s being implemented is still forthcoming. The Department of Health Care Services is the department implementing doula coverage and postpartum Medi-Cal extension, and you can check their website for information about those items. The CalWORKS website has information about how to check your eligibility and apply. You can also call them at (866) 613-3777.

What other legislation has BWWAP passed to support Black mommas and babies?

Senate Bill 464 (Mitchell)– the California Dignity in Pregnancy and Childbirth Act. This law requires all health care providers that take care of pregnant people to receive implicit bias training every two years. It also requires that patients are given information about how to report discrimination in health care services. Research confirms that discrimination and implicit bias contribute to the quality of care that Black folks receive and it has been identified as a reason for the disparity in pregnancy related deaths and health outcomes for Black pregnant mommas. Implicit bias is the idea that negative attitudes, stereotypes or beliefs about a group of people unconsciously affect our understanding and treatment of that group. 

Assembly Bill 1237 (Dodd)– the Justice and Equity in Maternity Care Act. This law expands access to perinatal care providers by removing the physician supervision requirement for nurse-midwives. This means more people will have access to nurse-midwives. This is especially important in geographic areas of the state where there aren’t many doctors– currently, at least nine counties in California do not have an OB-GYN. Nurse-midwives are advanced practice nurses who have completed training in both nursing and a higher education program (obtaining either a master’s or doctoral degree) with a focus in midwifery.

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BWWAP worked hard to defeat this conservative power grab. With support from our partners at Million Voters Project, our team:

• Talked with more than 6,500 voters on the phones to ensure they understood the process, had a plan to vote, understood what was at stake and the importance of voting no in the election
   
• Created and placed ads statewide where we new Black voters would see and hear them. From Los Angeles to the Bay Area, we reached hundreds of thousands of voters in South LA, Compton, Watts, Inglewood, Palmdale, Lancaster, Oakland, Stockton, Fresno and beyond through mobile app ads, billboards, wheat postings, and local newspapers

• Ran radio ads heard by over 100 thousand people in Los Angeles
   
• Connected with 65+ businesses in South LA to encourage them to share No on the Recall messages and voting information with their clientele
   
• Partnered with BIPOC lead and serving organizations lead by Courage California to host a youth-focused Stop the Recall Rally where we engaged, energized and educated attendees on the issues at stake
   
• Partnered with NARAL Pro-Choice California and Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California to host a Stop the Recall Reproductive Freedom Phone Bank that featured elected officials and community leaders who offered their insights with 150+ volunteers and underscored the importance of voting NO in this special election

Voters had two questions on their ballots—we urged Californians to vote NO on question one. Voting NO meant we kept our Governor and protected our democracy. In the 2.5 years since Governor Newsom has taken office, he has worked with us to advance access to maternal care and break down racial inequalities in our state. We’ve fought for and won: the largest renter assistance and relief program in the country; an extended moratorium on evictions; and COVID-19 relief and health benefits for many families. Right now, Black communities are being heavily impacted by the pandemic, uprisings demand a reckoning with systemic racism, and now abortion access is rapidly shrinking around the country—more than ever, California must be a leader in these progressive fights, and we cannot allow right-wing backlash to dismantle the progress we’ve fought so hard for.

The stakes were high in this election. Instead of sitting on the sidelines, we MOBILIZED our communities to vote. Our democracy and our futures depended on it.

Paid for by Black Women for Wellness Action Project

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As uprisings swept across the nation in the summer of 2020, BWWAP joined forces with several coalition partners to urge Governor Newsom to declare racism a public health crisis. In a glaring example of reproductive injustice, Black women have for decades been dying from pregnancy-related causes at 3 to 4 times the rate of California’s average, with somewhere between 40 to 70% of these deaths deemed preventable. Racial bias in our health system is partially to blame, and BWWAP has sponsored legislation in recent years to expose and address this. In 2021, we are advancing a comprehensive Momnibus package that increases access to doulas, collects data on racial disparities, and extends postpartum Medi-Cal coverage, among other things. We applaud Governor Newsom and the state legislature for recognizing the importance of addressing maternal health disparities in California, and are committed to continuing this work and educating decision-makers about the ways historic and systematic racism continues to harm the health of women and families. 

Our efforts to have racism acknowledged as a public health crisis extend to the 2021 state budget process. California is currently sitting on a budget surplus in the billions. It is time for our state to invest in We support the $500 million Racial Justice Innovation Fund budget request, which will help California take advantage of this window in time to reimagine our systems and structures and strive for a more equitable state. With bold and innovative solutions properly funded and led by stakeholders who can leverage their expertise, our state can be a national leader in the fight for racial justice. 

Structural racism is a complex problem that requires innovative solutions. We have lent our voice to the chorus demanding diverting resources away from the police and towards healthcare, affordable housing, and food security. We are committed to working with leaders to innovatively address the historic and systemic racism that has resulted in the racial disparities that continue to cause harm and inequities across our state.

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To do this, we held weekly online educational forums in the fall where voters could drop by and get their questions answered. We also used information gleaned from focus groups to design ads that would appeal to young Black voters in California. Understanding that Black voters recognize and are impacted by a range of intersectional issues, our ads touched upon a broad scope of factors including health care, climate change, racism, and voting rights. We ran our ads where the most people would see them: online, and in transit locations where essential workers– most of whom are people of color– were still commuting during the pandemic. More than 4.9 million people viewed our transit ads in Los Angeles and the Bay Area, and another 294,000 were reached via our digital ads. On social media, we reached an additional 789,000 people and our content generated more than 11,000 comments and other interactions.

The post We Woke. We Vote. appeared first on BWWAP.

Crisis Pregnancy Centers are essentially fake clinics that lure pregnant women– primarily women of color– with the promise of affordable reproductive care, then force an anti-abortion agenda on patients to dissuade them from terminating a pregnancy. There are currently dozens of known Crisis Pregnancy Centers operating in California, and the Trump administration made it easier for these groups to receive federal funding.

BWW has sponsored state legislation to inform people about these fake clinics and how they harm women, but unfortunately the policy was never implemented because anti-abortion activists sued California in a case that went all the way up to the supreme court and lost 5-4. After this, we teamed up with Courage California to create a short film that highlights the dangers of CPCs as well as educate our communities about abortion access. We also ran ads throughout California to elevate the importance of safe, legal abortion.

Check out YouDeserveBetter.Us to learn more about how to spot a fake clinic, what your rights are, and actions you can take to stop these harmful practices.

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