Bill Text

Existing law finds and declares that prenatal care, delivery service, postpartum care, and neonatal and infant care are essential services necessary to assure maternal and infant health. Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health to develop and maintain a statewide community-based comprehensive perinatal services program to, among other program objectives, ensure the appropriate level of maternal, newborn, and pediatric care services necessary to provide the healthiest outcome for mother and infant. Existing law, the Maternal Mental Health Conditions Education, Early Diagnosis, and Treatment Act, requires a general acute care hospital or special hospital that has a perinatal unit to develop and implement a program to provide education and information to appropriate health care professionals and patients about maternal mental health conditions.

This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to address the scarcity of mental health providers, to increase support services addressing, among other subjects, postpartum depression, prenatal, delivery, and postpartum care, and to improve access to postpartum depression screening, referral, treatment, and support services in medically underserved areas and areas with demonstrated need.