Bond, Breaux Introduce Prenatal Care Bill

Sens. Christopher Bond (R-Mo.) and John Breaux (D-La.) last Friday introduced the "Mothers And Newborns Health Insurance Act Of 2001" (SB 724), which would allow states to provide prenatal care coverage through their CHIP programs to low-income, uninsured pregnant women age 19 and older. In addition, states could use presumptive eligibility to enroll uninsured pregnant women quickly and could "automatically enroll infants born to mothers covered through CHIP to prevent a gap in health coverage." Dr. Jennifer Howse, president of the March of Dimes, said that the organization is "particularly pleased to see that the bill introduced by Sens. Bond and Breaux includes several key provisions that would ... improve the health of mothers and children by providing greater access to prenatal care" (March of Dimes release, 4/6).