,i #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #fada ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,march #i1 #bjbj,ms4 ,underwood 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,bilirakis1 and ,ms4 ,adams7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,veterans' ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to improve maternity care coordination provided by the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,protecting ,moms ,who ,served ,act4 #b4 ,support for maternity care coordination 7a7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated to the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs #ae1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjbb to improve maternity care coordination for women veterans throughout pregnancy and the one-year postpartum period beginning on the last day of the pregnancy4 ,such amounts are authorized in addition to any other amounts authorized for such purpose4 7b7 ,plan 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary shall submit to the ,committees on ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,senate and the ,house of ,representatives a plan to improve maternity care coordination to fulfill the responsibilities and requirements described in the ,veterans ,health ,administration ,handbook #accj4jc1 or any successor handbook4 7#b7 ,elements ,the plan under paragraph 7#a7 shall include the following3 7,a7 ,with respect to the amounts authorized to be appropriated by subsection 7a71 a description of how the ,secretary will ensure such amounts are used to-- 7i7 hire full-time maternity care coordinators2 7ii7 train maternity care coordinators2 and 7iii7 improve support programs led by maternity care coordinators4 7,b7 ,recommendations for the amount of funding the ,secretary determines appropriate to improve maternity care coordination as described in paragraph 7#a7 for each of the five fiscal years following the date of the plan4 7#c7 ,consultation ,the ,secretary shall develop the plan under paragraph 7#a7 in consultation with veterans service organizations1 military service organizations1 women's health care providers1 and community-based organizations representing women from demographic groups disproportionately impacted by poor maternal health outcomes1 that the ,secretary determines appropriate4 #c4 ,sense of ,congress on veteran status requirements ,it is the sense of ,congress that each ,state should list the veteran status of a mother-- 7#a7 in fetal death records2 and 7#b7 in maternal mortality review committee reviews of pregnancy-related deaths and pregnancy-associated deaths4 #d4 ,report on maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among women veterans 7a7 ,,gao report ,not later than two years after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,comptroller ,general of the ,united ,states shall submit to the ,committees on ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,senate and the ,house of ,representatives1 and make publicly available1 a report on maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among women veterans1 with a particular focus on racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes for women veterans4 7b7 ,matters included ,the report under subsection 7a7 shall include the following3 7#a7 ,to the extent practicable-- 7,a7 the number of women veterans who have experienced a pregnancy-related death or pregnancy-associated death in the most recent #aj years of available data2 7,b7 the rate of pregnancy-related deaths per #ajj1jjj live births for women veterans2 7,c7 the number of cases of severe maternal morbidity among women veterans in the most recent year of available data2 7,d7 the racial and ethnic disparities in maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity rates among women veterans2 7,e7 identification of the causes of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity that are unique to women who have served in the military1 including post-traumatic stress disorder1 military sexual trauma1 and infertility or miscarriages that may be caused by such service2 7,f7 identification of the causes of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity that are unique to women veterans of color2 and 7,g7 identification of any correlations between the former rank of women veterans and their maternal health outcomes4 7#b7 ,an assessment of the barriers to determining the information required under paragraph 7#a7 and recommendations for improvements in tracking maternal health outcomes among-- 7,a7 women veterans who have health care coverage through the ,department2 7,b7 women veterans enrolled in the ,,tricare program2 7,c7 women veterans with employer-based or private insurance2 and 7,d7 women veterans enrolled in the ,medicaid program4 7#c7 ,recommendations for legislative and administrative actions to increase access to mental and behavioral health care for women veterans who screen positively for postpartum mental or behavioral health conditions4 7#d7 ,recommendations to address homelessness among pregnant and postpartum women veterans4 7#e7 ,recommendations on how to effectively educate maternity care providers on best practices for providing maternity care services to women veterans that addresses the unique maternal health care needs of veteran populations4 7#f7 ,recommendations to reduce maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among women veterans and to address racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes for each of the groups described in subparagraphs 7,a7 through 7,d7 of paragraph 7#b74 7#g7 ,recommendations to improve coordination of care between the ,department and non-,department facilities for pregnant and postpartum women veterans1 including recommendations to improve training for the directors of the ,veterans ,integrated ,service ,networks1 directors of medical facilities of the ,department1 chiefs of staff of such facilities1 maternity care coordinators1 and relevant non-,department facilities4 7#h7 ,an assessment of the authority of the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs to access maternal health data collected by the ,department of ,health and ,human ,services and1 if applicable1 recommendations to increase such authority4 7#i7 ,any other information the ,comptroller ,general determines appropriate with respect to the reduction of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among women veterans and to address racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes for women veterans4