Sponsors (7)
The bill aims to improve abortion care experience and equity by studying and encouraging doula support and informing coverage decisions, but it introduces potential fiscal costs, administrative burdens, legal risks in restrictive states, and uncertainty about long-term sustainability and demonstrable clinical benefits.
People seeking abortion care (pregnant people/women, including racial-ethnic minorities, low-income and immigrant communities) will gain trained non-clinical doula support before, during, and after care that improves patient experience, reduces stress, and provides navigation and advocacy.
State governments, Medicaid programs, providers, and advocates will receive clarified federal responsibility and evidence to evaluate and potentially design coverage or reimbursement policies for doula services (increasing the potential for Medicaid/insurance coverage decisions informed by data).
Community-based and rural doulas and people in underserved areas may gain visibility and stronger evidence to support program expansion, improving local access to supportive services for abortion care.
Taxpayers and state Medicaid programs could face increased costs if states adopt coverage or reimbursement for abortion doula services, creating fiscal pressure for states and federal/state budgets.
The law and resulting findings could trigger legal and political challenges in states that restrict abortion, creating uncertainty and potential legal risk for doulas, providers, and patients.
Fear of local legal or political consequences and concerns about data handling could deter participation in studies, reduce representativeness of findings, and risk exposure of sensitive participant information if anonymization is inadequate.
Based on analysis of 5 sections of legislative text.
Requires HHS to study abortion doula benefits, access, and Medicaid coverage options, then report findings and policy recommendations to Congress within 18 months.
Introduced March 27, 2025 by Marilyn Strickland · Last progress March 27, 2025
Requires the Department of Health and Human Services to study the benefits, availability, and policy options for integrating non-clinical abortion doula care into abortion services and Medicaid. HHS must collect surveys, interviews, and literature, consult experts and community doulas, anonymize data, and deliver a public report with findings and state-level policy recommendations within 18 months of enactment.