Proposal would give new Wisconsin mothers Medicaid coverage for a year

A bipartisan proposal scheduled for a hearing in the state Senate insurance committee seeks to grant a full year of Medicaid coverage for new mothers, according to a report from the Wisconsin State Journal.

The proposal is part of a nationwide push for expanded medical care for new mothers that gained ground after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and it’s been supported by both Democrats and Republicans.

Almost half of all Wisconsin legislators signed onto the bill, SB 110, which would allow pregnant women to receive Medicaid benefits for a year after they give birth, up from the current standard of 60 days.

In Wisconsin, between 25 and 45 women die during or within one year of pregnancy, the state health department said, and maternal mortality is five times greater among Black women than white women in the state.