Researchers from University of Washington Report Findings in Managed Care (State variations in maternal and child health workforce support): Managed Care

2026 APR 07 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Research findings on Managed Care are discussed in a new report. According to news originating from Seattle, Washington, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “Maternal and child health (MCH) indices can identify areas of opportunity to address maternal and infant health needs but tend to lack measures specific to MCH workforce support. To address this gap, we developed the MCH Worker Supportive Policy Index, a composite index of 28 policy indicators across 4 domains: midwifery workforce, doula workforce, labor policy, and economic policy.”

Funders for this research include Health Resources and Services Administration, US Department of Health and Human Services, HRSA, HHS.

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from the University of Washington, “We scored each measure on a 100-point scale, where larger values represent more supportive policies. We calculated a state-level average for each subindex and then averaged each subindex’s average to produce the overall state-level MCH Worker Index. Scores ranged from 23 (Wyoming) to 92 (California), with high-scoring states offering Medicaid expansion, paid family leave, protections for LGBTQ+ workers, and Medicaid reimbursement for doula services. Higher scores on the Midwifery Workforce Index were correlated with greater certified nurse midwife supply, fewer maternity care deserts, and lower cesarean delivery rates (< .05). These findings underscore how supportive policies, such as scope-of-practice expansion and reimbursement parity, may support greater workforce availability and better perinatal outcomes.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “These findings highlight both state-level assets and opportunities for improvement and can inform planning and policy efforts targeted towards sustaining a thriving MCH workforce.”

This research has been peer-reviewed.

For more information on this research see: State variations in maternal and child health workforce support. Health Affairs Scholar, 2026;4(3).

The news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained from Grace A. Guenther, Center for Health Workforce Studies, Dept. of Family Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-4982, United States. Additional authors for this research include Paula M. Kett, Benjamin S. Dunlap and Bianca K. Frogner.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1093/haschl/qxag053. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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