National trends in health insurance coverage of pregnant and reproductive-age women, 2000 to 2009

PurposeHealth insurance facilitates financial access to health services, including prenatal and preconception care. This study characterized changes in health insurance coverage among reproductive-age women in the United States from 2000 to 2009.MethodsData from female respondents (ages 18–49) to the National Health Interview Surveys, 2000 to 2009 (n = 207,968), including those pregnant when surveyed (n = 3,204), were used in a repeated cross-sectional design. Changes over time were estimated using longitudinal regression models.Main FindingsOf the reproductive-age women in this study, 25% were uninsured at some point in the prior year. Ten percent of pregnant women reported currently being uninsured, and 27% and 58% reported Medicaid coverage or private health insurance, respectively. Among women who were not pregnant, 19% were currently uninsured, 8% had Medicaid, and 68% had private coverage. From 2000 to 2009, an increasing percentage of reproductive-age women reported having gone without health insurance in the past year. Controlling for sociodemographic and health variables, the chances that a reproductive-age woman had been uninsured increased by approximately 1.5% annually (p < .001), and did not differ between pregnant women and those who were not pregnant. The odds that an insured pregnant woman had Medicaid coverage increased 7% per year over the study period (p < .001), whereas the odds of private coverage decreased.ConclusionReproductive-age women are increasingly at risk of being uninsured, which raises concerns about access to prenatal and preconception care. Among pregnant women, access to private health insurance has decreased, and state Medicaid programs have covered a growing percentage of women. Health reform will likely impact future trends.     

On the Outskirts of National Health Reform: A Comparative Assessment of Health Insurance and Access to Care in Puerto Rico and the United States

Context

Puerto Rico is the United States’ largest territory, home to nearly 4 million American citizens. Yet it has remained largely on the outskirts of US health policy, including the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This article presents an overview of Puerto Rico’s health care system and a comparative analysis of coverage and access to care in Puerto Rico and the mainland United States.

Methods

We analyzed 2011-2012 data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, and 2012 data from the American Community Survey and its counterpart, the Puerto Rico Community Survey. Among adults 18 and older, we examined health insurance coverage; access measures, such as having a usual source of care and cost-related delays in care; self-reported health; and the receipt of recommended preventive services, such as cancer screening and glucose testing. We used multivariate regression models to compare Puerto Rico and the mainland United States, adjusted for age, income, race/ethnicity, and other demographic variables.

Findings

Uninsured rates were significantly lower in Puerto Rico (unadjusted 7.4% versus 15.0%, adjusted difference: −12.0%, p < 0.001). Medicaid was far more common in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rican residents were more likely than those in the mainland United States to have a usual source of care and to have had a checkup within the past year, and fewer experienced cost-related delays in care. Screening rates for diabetes, mammograms, and Pap smears were comparable or better in Puerto Rico, while colonoscopy rates were lower. Self-reported health was slightly worse, but obesity and smoking rates were lower.

Conclusions

Despite its far poorer population, Puerto Rico outperforms the mainland United States on several measures of coverage and access. Congressional policies capping federal Medicaid funds to the territory, however, have contributed to major budgetary challenges. While the ACA has significantly increased federal resources in Puerto Rico, ongoing restrictions on Medicaid funding and premium tax credits are posing substantial health policy challenges in the territory.     

An Assessment of the Use and Impact of Ancillary Prenatal Care Services to Medicaid Women in Managed Care

Objectives: Managed care plans under Medicaid are becoming a usual source of care for low-income pregnant women. This study describes an ancillary prenatal care service intervention developed by one managed care organization (MCO) for Medicaid-enrolled women, assesses the extent to which the intervention services were used, and appraises the influence of the intervention on prenatal care participation. Method: There were 226 intervention and 258 control women with a single live birth delivered between 28 and 44 weeks gestation who (1) were enrolled in the MCO's Medicaid program, (2) were high-risk based on a prenatal risk assessment, and (3) started prenatal care prior to 26 weeks gestation. Less than adequate and intensive prenatal care utilization were chosen as intervention outcomes measures. Results: Family planning, a 2-month postpartum baby visit, a maternal postpartum visit, and a WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children) referral were among the most self-selected intervention services for this population; home health aide and breast-feeding support were the least requested services. Over 90% of those needing family planning or breast-feeding services received the services, while over 20% of the intervention group refused child care, food assistance and family violence referrals, and home health aide and smoking cessation services. The intervention group had a significantly lower risk of less than adequate utilization of prenatal care (OR = .32; 95% CI: 0.17–0.60) and was more likely to have an intensive number of prenatal care visits (OR = 1.61; 95% CI: 1.05–2.48). Conclusions: The ability of managed care organizations to provide ongoing prenatal care to Medicaid populations in a cost-effective manner depends partly on their development of packages of prenatal services that foster positive preventive health care utilization behaviors and good pregnancy outcomes. The results of this project suggest that the intervention was beneficial in the area of improving utilization of prenatal care.     

The Influence of Site of Care on the Content of Prenatal Care for Low-Income Women

Objective: To assess whether site of prenatal care influences the content of prenatal care for low-income women. Design: Bivariate and logistic analyses of prenatal care content for low-income women provided at five different types of care sites (private offices, HMOs, publicly funded clinics, hospital clinics, and other sites of care), controlling for sociodemographic, behavioral, and maternal health characteristics. Participants: A sample of 3405 low-income women selected from a nationally representative sample of 9953 women surveyed by the National Maternal and Infant Health Survey, who had singleton live births in 1988, had some prenatal care (PNC), Medicaid participation, or a family income less than $12,000/year. Outcome Measures: Maternal report of seven initial PNC procedures (individually and combined), six areas of PNC advice (individually and combined), and participation in the Women Infant Children (WIC) nutrition program. Results: The content of PNC provided for low-income women does not meet the recommendations of the U.S. Public Health Service, and varies by site of delivery. Low-income women in publicly funded clinics (health departments and community health centers) report receiving more total initial PNC procedures and total PNC advice and have greater participation in the WIC program than similar women receiving PNC in private offices. Conclusions: Publicly funded sites of care appear to provide more comprehensive prenatal care services than private office settings. Health care systems reforms which assume equality of care across all sites, or which limit services to restricted sites, may foster unequal access to comprehensive PNC.     

The effect of a Medicaid managed care program on the adequacy of prenatal care utilization in Rhode Island

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to determine whether adequacy of prenatal care utilization improved after the implementation of a Medicaid managed care program in Rhode Island. METHODS: Rhode Island birth certificate data (1993-1995; n = 37021) were used to analyze pre- and post-program implementation changes in adequacy of prenatal care utilization. Logistic regression models were used to characterize the variation in prenatal care adequacy as a function of both time and the various covariates. RESULTS: Adequacy of prenatal care utilization for Medicaid patients improved significantly after implementation of the program, from 57.1% to 62.1% (odds ratio [OR] = 1.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.1, 1.3). After the program was implemented, Medicaid patients who went to private physicians' offices for prenatal care were 1.4 times as likely as before to receive adequate prenatal care (OR = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.2, 1.7). CONCLUSIONS: Unlike many other Medicaid expansions for pregnant women, the RIte Care program in Rhode Island has resulted in significant improvement in adequacy of prenatal care utilization for its enrollees. This improvement was due to specific program interventions that addressed and changed organizational and delivery system barriers to care.     

Oregon’s Coordinated Care Organizations and Their Effect on Prenatal Care Utilization Among Medicaid Enrollees

Introduction Previous studies indicate that inadequate prenatal care is more common among women covered by Medicaid compared with private insurance. Increasing the proportion of pregnant women who receive early and adequate prenatal care is a Healthy People 2020 goal. We examined the impact of the implementation of Oregon’s accountable care organizations, Coordinated Care Organizations (CCOs), for Medicaid enrollees, on prenatal care utilization among Oregon women of reproductive age enrolled in Medicaid. Methods Using Medicaid eligibility data linked to unique birth records for 2011–2013, we used a pre-posttest treatment–control design that compared prenatal care utilization for women on Medicaid before and after CCO implementation to women never enrolled in Medicaid. Additional stratified analyses were conducted to explore differences in the effect of CCO implementation based on rurality, race, and ethnicity. Results After CCO implementation, mothers on Medicaid had a 13% increase in the odds of receiving first trimester care (OR 1.13, CI 1.04, 1.23). Non-Hispanic (OR 1.20, CI 1.09, 1.32), White (OR 1.20, CI 1.08, 1.33) and Asian (OR 2.03, CI 1.26, 3.27) women on Medicaid were more likely to receive initial prenatal care in the first trimester after CCO implementation and only Medicaid women in urban areas were more likely (OR 1.14, CI 1.05, 1.25) to initiate prenatal care in the first trimester. Conclusion Following Oregon’s implementation of an innovative Medicaid coordinated care model, we found that women on Medicaid experienced a significant increase in receiving timely prenatal care.     

Prospective Recruitment of Women Receiving Prenatal Care from Diverse Provider Arrangements: A Potential Strategy

Objectives: This study describes the use of a Medicaid managed care list to prospectively recruit into a research project pregnant women receiving care from a variety of providers. Method: A list of women enrolled in Medicaid managed care was used to recruit pregnant African-American and Latina women into a study of prenatal care satisfaction. Due to privacy concerns, the researchers were not able to directly access names from the list. Instead, a managed care contract agency sent recruitment letters to 1009 pregnant African-American and Latina Medicaid recipients. Response rates by ethnicity and several other key variables are calculated. The biases associated with this method of recruiting pregnant women from a variety of providers are discussed. Results: Thirty-five percent of the women contacted returned consent forms and agreed to have researchers approach them; the response rate for African-American women was 43% and for Latinas was 29% (p < 0.0001). Respondents were younger and later in their pregnancies than nonrespondents, but did not differ from them by zip code of residence. The women recruited into the study obtained prenatal care from a diverse group of providers. Conclusions: While the use of a prospectively generated list of pregnant Medicaid recipients to recruit low-income pregnant women into a research study may be associated with some selection bias, the potential cost savings, decreased effort, and diminished recall bias may make their use a feasible sampling alternative, particularly when the researcher desires to recruit women seeking care from a variety of provider arrangements.     

The role of perceived stress on prenatal care utilization: implications for social work practice.

Data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development/Missouri Maternal and Infant Health Survey on about 2,828 mothers were used to examine the relationship between perceived stress and prenatal care utilization. Major life events that contribute to stress also were examined in relation to adequacy of prenatal care. Women who received inadequate prenatal care were more likely to have reported that they almost always felt stress during pregnancy. Odds ratios were statistically significant for women who were not black and Medicaid recipients but not for black women and women who were not covered by Medicaid. Social work intervention for stress reduction on behalf of pregnant women has the potential to contribute to improved prenatal care utilization, but further analysis of the kinds of stress women experience will enhance social work's ability to target specific interventions.     

Selection Bias in Prenatal Care Use by Medicaid Recipients

Objective: This study examines whether four types of selection bias in estimates of the effectiveness of prenatal care utilization for improving birthweight occur in a population of economically disadvantaged women. Methods: We categorized adequacy of prenatal care use using the Adequacy of Prenatal Care Utilization Index (APNCU) and the Revised-GINDEX for 142,381 Medicaid recipients who gave birth to a live, singleton infant in Washington State (1994–1998). Multinomial logistic regression was used to model categories of adequacy of prenatal care use as functions of variables chosen to indicate high- or low-risk status. A series of linear regression models were estimated to quantify the magnitude and direction of any bias in the effects of prenatal care on birthweight that could be attributed to accounting for each risk covariate. Results were examined for patterns of risk, prenatal care use, and estimation bias equated with the four selection processes. Results: We found modest evidence of adverse, favorable, confidence, and estrangement selection biases. The overriding effect, relative to low prenatal care use, was overestimation of the adequate care coefficient by 8.68 g with the APNCU, and underestimation by 3.36 g with the R-GINDEX because of competing confidence and estrangement selection biases. Relative to intensive use, the effect of adequate care on birthweight was underestimated (17.58 g with the APNCU; 13.34 g with the R-GINDEX) because of adverse selection bias and a small countervailing favorable selection process. Conclusions: The underestimation of birthweight associated with prenatal care noted in prior studies appears to result from multiple selection processes working in different directions. Understanding selection processes can help the assessment of the contribution of prenatal care to birth outcomes and development of appropriate programs and policies.     

Prenatal care comparisons among privately insured, uninsured, and Medicaid-enrolled women

Women without health insurance and those covered by Medicaid have been shown to obtain prenatal care later in pregnancy and make fewer visits for care than do women with private insurance. Factors that keep women from obtaining care include inadequate maternity care resources, difficulty in securing financial coverage, and the psychosocial issues of pregnancy. This study identified and compared prenatal care use patterns, insurance coverage changes, and psychosocial factors among 149 women in Minneapolis, MN, with private health insurance, Medicaid, and no health insurance. Little information has been available on the insurance status of women at the start of pregnancy and the paths subsequently taken to obtain financial coverage for prenatal care.     

The Effect of Pregnancy Intention on Important Maternal Behaviors and Satisfaction with Care in a Socially and Economically At-Risk Population

This study examined the association of pregnancy intention with maternal behaviors and the woman’s perceived satisfaction with her prenatal and delivery care. Face-to-face interviews with 478 primarily Medicaid eligible women in Indianapolis, Indiana during their postpartum hospital stay were conducted to assess their degree of satisfaction with prenatal care and pregnancy intention, stratified into wanting to be pregnant now, later or never. Behaviors and characteristics influencing utilization of prenatal care were obtained from linked birth certificate data. A greater proportion of younger women (15–29) wanted to be pregnant later, a greater proportion of African-Americans never wanted to be pregnant, a greater proportion of divorced and never married women wanted to be pregnant later or never, and as parity increased the percentage of women never wanting to be pregnant increased. Multivariate analyses found that women never wanting to be pregnant were twice as likely to underutilize prenatal care, twice as likely to smoke while pregnant, half as likely to utilize WIC services and half as likely to recommend their providers to pregnant friends or relatives compared to women with a planned pregnancy, controlling for confounding variables. Finally, women wanting to be pregnant later were half as likely to rate their overall hospital care and prenatal care provider as high. Providers assessing their patients’ pregnancy intention could better identify those women needing additional support services to adopt healthier behaviors and improve satisfaction with care. This study also demonstrated the value of more specific definitions of pregnancy intention.     

Disparities and Barriers Encountered by Immigrant Dominican Mothers Accessing Prenatal Care Services in Puerto Rico

Inadequate access to prenatal services has been associated with higher rates of mother and child mortality and premature births in the general population. Thus, this paper aims to compare the utilization and adequacy of prenatal care services of Dominican immigrant mothers with that of Puerto Rican mothers. Data was extracted from birth certificates using a cohort from 1998 to 2002 (n = 252, 919). The Kotelchuck index for adequate prenatal care was used for comparison with socio-demographic characteristics of the population. Less than half of Dominican mothers (48.5 %) received adequate prenatal care compared to more than two-thirds (69.1 %) of Puerto Rican mothers (p < .001). After controlling for demographic characteristics, health insurance, pregnancy risks, complications and previous birth (parity) the odds of receiving adequate care of Dominican mothers was 0.7 that of Puerto Rican mothers (p < .001). These results suggest significant disparities in obtaining adequate prenatal care services among migrant women and native Puerto Ricans.     

Changes in Births to Foreign-born Women after Welfare and Immigration Policy Reforms in California

Objectives: To determine whether passage of welfare and immigration policies was followed in California by changes in births to foreign-born women in California with respect to total numbers, payer sources, prenatal care use, or health outcomes. Methods: Comparison of births to foreign-born and US-born women from 1990 to 1997 using adjusted odds ratios generated with multivariate logistic regression. Results: Policies passed in 1994 and 1996 were followed by decreases in adjusted odds of births to foreign-born women with prenatal Medicaid coverage, without a corresponding increase in uninsured foreign-born women. There was no decline in the use of prenatal care by foreign-born women, and no worsening of birth outcomes after passage of the reforms. Foreign-born women, however, remained more likely to have inadequate prenatal care than US-born women, and the improvement in outcomes that occurred for US-born women from 1994 to 1997 did not occur for foreign-born women. Conclusions: In spite of the fact that pregnant immigrant women remained eligible for Medicaid after passage of welfare and immigration policies in California, the volume of births to foreign-born women using Medicaid declined. The lack of a corresponding increase in births to uninsured foreign-born women appears to have prevented deterioration in the use of prenatal care or birth outcomes.     

Prenatal care initiation among very low-income women in the aftermath of welfare reform: does pre-pregnancy Medicaid coverage make a difference?

Objectives: To examine pre-pregnancy Medicaid coverage and initiation of prenatal care among women likely eligible for Medicaid coverage regardless of pregnancy. Methods: The Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) was used to identify very low-income women with Medicaid payment for delivery. We then compared prenatal care initiation among women with (Non-GAP) and without (Medicaid GAP) pre-pregnancy Medicaid coverage. Results: Rates of first trimester prenatal care were 47.3% for women in the Medicaid GAP, 70.0% for women who were not. The adjusted odds ratio for being in the Medicaid GAP and delayed prenatal care was 2.7 (95% CI 1.2, 6.2), although this varied by race/ethnicity and education. The relationship was strongest among White and Hispanic women with less than a high school education: OR=13.8, (95% CI 3.0, 62.7) and OR=19.0 (95% CI 2.4, 149.2), respectively. Conclusions: Pre-pregnancy Medicaid coverage appears to be associated with early initiation of prenatal care. Almost a decade after welfare reform, it is essential to preserve the Medicaid expansions for pregnant women, foster Medicaid family planning waivers, and promote access to primary care and early prenatal care, particularly for very low-income women.     

Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Discordance Between Women's Assessment of the Timing of Their Prenatal Care Entry and the First Trimester Standard

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the discordance between women's assessment of the adequacy of the timing of their prenatal care entry and the standard of first trimester initiation was associated with maternal race or ethnicity. Methods: A population-based surveillance system, the California Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System, provided data on a stratified random sample of 4,987 women. The women delivered live-born infants from 1994–95 in three perinatal regions. Respondents completed an in-hospital, self-administered questionnaire. Weighted data were analyzed with multiple logistic regression. Results: Twenty-two percent of the women in the sample initiated prenatal care after the first trimester of pregnancy (n = 1,097). Among the women with untimely care, 57% (n = 591) were satisfied with the time of care initiation. Discordance between the women's perception of the adequacy of the time of care initiation and the public health standard of first trimester initiation was associated with maternal ethnicity. After controlling for potential confounders, Mexican-born women with untimely care were more likely to report being satisfied with the time of initiation than were white non-Latina women with untimely care (OR = 4.03, CI = 2.46, 6.59). Conclusions: The design of public health interventions to increase the timeliness of prenatal care initiation will require a greater understanding of pregnant women's own perceptions of their needs for prenatal care, and the differences in perceptions across ethnic groups.     

The Impact of National Health Insurance on the Utilization of Health Care Services by Pregnant Women: The Case in Taiwan

Objectives: Substantially increased funding for health care services occurred in Taiwan after the implementation of a national health insurance plan in 1995. This study attempts to examine the impact of this national health insurance plan on the utilization of prenatal and intrapartum care services. Methods: Nationally representative surveys of all pregnant women in Taiwan in 1989 (1,662 participants) and in 1996 (3,626 participants) were included in the analysis. We first compared the distribution of birth characteristics between the two surveys. We then calculated the rate of utilization of various prenatal and intrapartum care services in the two surveys in the overall sample and in subsamples, stratified by maternal education, age, and parity. Results: The utilization of most prenatal and intrapartum care services, especially the complicated laboratory tests, increased in 1996 compared to 1989. For example, the proportion of women who received amniocentesis increased from 1.62% in 1989 to 5.60% in 1996 and German measles testing increased from 5.96% to 27.11%. By contrast, the proportion of women who received consultation services was stable over time, or for family planning, consultation declined from 33.21% to 27.00%. These changes in utilization over time were consistently observed across different maternal education, age, and parity groups. Conclusions: The utilization of prenatal and intrapartum care services, especially for the more expensive services, has substantially increased in Taiwan since the implementation of the national health insurance. For countries considering similar national health insurance plan, it may be helpful to consider cost-containing measures before the implementation of such a plan.     

Knowing the Fetal Gender and its Relationship to Seeking Prenatal Care: Results from Jordan

Objectives The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between knowing fetal gender and seeking prenatal care. Methods Four-hundred and eighty-four postpartum mothers identified before discharge from the maternity unit participated in this study. We collected data from the women using two sources: a demographic data questionnaire and reviews of hospital records. The number of prenatal care visits during pregnancy was determined to assess the adequacy of prenatal care. In the current study, we defined less-than-adequate prenatal care as less than nine prenatal care visits. Results The data showed that Jordanian women had a strong preference for male babies. The findings suggested that knowing the fetal gender was significantly related to the mean number (7.01 ± 2.75) of prenatal care visits by the mother. When the prenatal gender was known the mean number of prenatal care visits of women pregnant with male fetuses (8.91 ± 1.25) was significantly higher than that of female fetuses (5.32 ± 2.64). Knowledge of fetal gender may thus increase the risk of less-than-adequate care among pregnant women with female fetuses (52.7%) compared to male fetuses (29%). Conclusions Jordanian women had a strong preference for male babies. Given prenatal knowledge of the gender is related to adequate prenatal care seeking behavior.     

Pregnancy Intentions,Pregnancy Attitudes,and the Use of Prenatal Care in Missouri

Objectives: This study uses data from 2378 mothers of live-born infants from the NICHD/Missouri Maternal and Infant Health Survey to examine the relationship between pregnancy intention and adequacy of prenatal care. Methods: Pregnancy intention was measured using traditional classifications of mistimed and unwanted pregnancies as well as additional measures of women's attitudes about their pregnancies. Odds ratios for inadequate prenatal care and its component parts (initiation of care and receipt of services) were calculated using multiple logistic regression in separate models and in a combined model for the measures of intention and attitude. Results: Women's attitudes about their pregnancies were associated with inadequate prenatal care, including both inadequate initiation of care and inadequate receipt of services. Traditional measures of intendedness were significantly related only to inadequate initiation of care. Women who were unhappy about the pregnancy (OR = 1.44), unsure that they wanted to be pregnant (OR = 2.81), or denied their pregnancies (OR = 4.82) were more likely to have inadequate prenatal care than women who did not have these attitudes. Women who were unhappy about being pregnant (OR = 1.86), unsure that they wanted to be pregnant (OR = 3.44), or who denied the pregnancy (OR = 6.69) were more likely to have inadequate initiation of care. Women who were unsure that they wanted to be pregnant (OR = 1.95) or who denied their pregnancies (OR = 2.47) were more likely to have received inadequate care once they had entered care. Conclusions: This study suggests that attitudes about pregnancy may be a psychosocial barrier to women obtaining early and continuous prenatal care. Pregnancy attitudes should be assessed and appropriate services provided to improve women's utilization of prenatal care. New measures of pregnancy attitude, beyond the traditional intention measures, can be useful in assessing pregnancy wantedness and identifying women to target for these services.     

The impact of welfare reform on insurance coverage before pregnancy and the timing of prenatal care initiation

OBJECTIVE: This study investigates the impact of welfare reform on insurance coverage before pregnancy and on first-trimester initiation of prenatal care (PNC) among pregnant women eligible for Medicaid under welfare-related eligibility criteria. DATA SOURCES: We used pooled data from the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System for eight states (AL, FL, ME, NY, OK, SC, WA, and WV) from 1996 through 1999. STUDY DESIGN: We estimated a two-part logistic model of insurance coverage before pregnancy and first-trimester PNC initiation. The impact of welfare reform on insurance coverage before pregnancy was measured by marginal effects computed from coefficients of an interaction term for the postreform period and welfare-related eligibility and on PNC initiation by the same interaction term and the coefficients of insurance coverage adjusted for potential simultaneous equation bias. We compared the estimates from this model with results from simple logistic, ordinary least squares, and two-stage least squares models. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Welfare reform had a significant negative impact on Medicaid coverage before pregnancy among welfare-related Medicaid eligibles. This drop resulted in a small decline in their first-trimester PNC initiation. Enrollment in Medicaid before pregnancy was independent of the decision to initiate PNC, and estimates of the effect of a reduction in Medicaid coverage before pregnancy on PNC initiation were consistent over the single- and two-stage models. Effects of private coverage were mixed. Welfare reform had no impact on first-trimester PNC beyond that from reduced Medicaid coverage in the pooled regression but separate state-specific regressions suggest additional effects from time and income constraints induced by welfare reform may have occurred in some states. CONCLUSIONS: Welfare reform had significant adverse effects on insurance coverage and first-trimester PNC initiation among our nation's poorest women of childbearing age. Improved outreach and insurance options for these women are needed to meet national health goals.     

Out-of-Pocket Costs and Insurance Coverage for Abortion in the United States

BackgroundSince 1976, federal Medicaid has excluded abortion care except in a small number of circumstances; 17 states provide this coverage using state Medicaid dollars. Since 2010, federal and state restrictions on insurance coverage for abortion have increased. This paper describes payment for abortion care before new restrictions among a sample of women receiving first and second trimester abortions.MethodsData are from the Turnaway Study, a study of women seeking abortion care at 30 facilities across the United States.FindingsTwo thirds received financial assistance, with those with pregnancies at later gestations more likely to receive assistance. Seven percent received funding from private insurance, 34% state Medicaid, and 29% other organizations. Median out-of-pocket costs when private insurance or Medicaid paid were $18 and $0. Median out-of-pocket cost for women for whom insurance or Medicaid did not pay was $575. For more than half, out-of-pocket costs were equivalent to more than one-third of monthly personal income; this was closer to two thirds among those receiving later abortions. One quarter who had private insurance had their abortion covered through insurance. Among women possibly eligible for Medicaid based on income and residence, more than one third received Medicaid coverage for the abortion. More than half reported cost as a reason for delay in obtaining an abortion. In a multivariate analysis, living in a state where Medicaid for abortion was available, having Medicaid or private insurance, being at a lower gestational age, and higher income were associated with lower odds of reporting cost as a reason for delay.ConclusionsOut-of-pocket costs for abortion care are substantial for many women, especially at later gestations. There are significant gaps in public and private insurance coverage for abortion.