How state policies affect immigrant mothers' pregnancy and birth health
State factors and maternal health among immigrants
This project compares pregnancy and birth complications among immigrant mothers with full public insurance to those with only Emergency Medicaid and looks at whether state policies that expand coverage improve care.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Univ of Maryland, College Park NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (College Park, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11333058 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers will use national Medicaid billing and hospital records from 2019–2022 to compare outcomes for immigrant women who received Emergency Medicaid during pregnancy versus those who had full-scope Medicaid coverage. They will measure things like severe maternal illness and delivery complications and then analyze whether state policy changes that expanded coverage before and after pregnancy—with a focused look at California—were linked to better care and outcomes. The work relies on de-identified claims data rather than new clinical visits, so individuals are not being asked to undergo tests or treatments for this project. If you were an immigrant mother who received Medicaid-covered care during these years, your anonymized records could be included in the analyses.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: The ideal people for this work are immigrant women of childbearing age who were pregnant between 2019 and 2022 and whose care was billed to Emergency Medicaid or full-scope Medicaid, especially in states that recently expanded coverage like California.
Not a fit: People without Medicaid-recorded care in the study period, non-immigrants, or those covered exclusively by private insurance or other non-Medicaid programs are unlikely to be included and thus won't directly benefit from this specific analysis.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the results could support expanding public insurance around pregnancy for non-qualified immigrants to reduce maternal complications and improve infant outcomes.
How similar studies have performed: Prior studies show Medicaid expansion often improves prenatal care and some birth outcomes, but direct comparisons of Emergency Medicaid versus full-scope coverage for non-qualified immigrants and the effects of very recent state expansions are less established.
Where this research is happening
College Park, United States
- Univ of Maryland, College Park — College Park, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Steenland, Maria Ward — Univ of Maryland, College Park
- Study coordinator: Steenland, Maria Ward
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.