About Maternal Care
California’s labor and delivery (L&D) needs are changing. Over the past decade, the state’s birth rate decreased 21% and 50 hospital L&D units closed. This, coupled with disparities in health outcomes for Black mothers, has placed maternal health in California in the spotlight.
Hospitals are developing innovative approaches to providing maternity care, recognizing that access is key to improving outcomes and reducing disparities — but there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Charting a path forward on this complex issue requires considering a community’s unique needs, including access to facilities and clinical specialists, availability of prenatal and perinatal services, the distance patients must travel to receive care, and more.
Under State Program, Hospitals to Provide to Diapers to All Newborns
What’s happening: Last week, Gov. Newsom announced the launch of a program that will provide 400 free diapers to the families of all babies born in California. Hospitals will provide diapers at the time of discharge, or shortly thereafter, such as during a newborn follow-up visit.