#aagth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #gif ,,an ,,act ,to codify maternity care coordination programs at the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,protecting ,moms ,who ,served ,act of #bjba4 #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,maternal mortality ,the term maternal mortality means a death occurring during pregnancy or within a one-year period after pregnancy that is caused by pregnancy-related or childbirth complications1 including suicide1 overdose1 or other death resulting from a mental health or substance use disorder attributed to or aggravated by pregnancy-related or childbirth complications4 7#b7 ,postpartum ,the term postpartum1 with respect to an individual1 means the one-year period beginning on the last day of the pregnancy of the individual4 7#c7 ,pregnancy-associated death ,the term pregnancy-associated death means the death of a pregnant or postpartum individual1 by any cause1 that occurs during pregnancy or within one year following pregnancy1 regardless of the outcome1 duration1 or site of the pregnancy4 7#d7 ,pregnancy-related death ,the term pregnancy-related death means the death of a pregnant or postpartum individual that occurs during pregnancy or within one year following pregnancy from a pregnancy complication1 a chain of events initiated by pregnancy1 or the aggravation of an unrelated condition by the physiologic effects of pregnancy4 7#e7 ,racial and ethnic minority group ,the term racial and ethnic minority group has the meaning given that term in section #agjg7;g77#a7 of the ,public ,health ,service ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #cjju-#f7;g77#a774 7#f7 ,severe maternal morbidity ,the term severe maternal morbidity means a health condition1 including a mental health condition or substance use disorder1 attributed to or aggravated by pregnancy or childbirth that results in significant short-term or long-term consequences to the health of the individual who was pregnant4 #c4 ,support by ,department of ,veterans ,affairs of maternity care coordination 7a7 ,program on maternity care coordination 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs shall carry out the maternity care coordination program described in ,veterans ,health ,administration ,directive #accj4jc4 7#b7 ,training and support ,in carrying out the program under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary shall provide to community maternity care providers training and support with respect to the unique needs of pregnant and postpartum veterans1 particularly regarding mental and behavioral health conditions relating to the service of those veterans in the ,armed ,forces4 7b7 ,authorization of appropriations 7#a7 ,in general ,there is authorized to be appropriated to the ,secretary #ae1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjbb for the program under subsection 7a77#a74 7#b7 ,supplement not supplant ,amounts authorized under paragraph 7#a7 are authorized in addition to any other amounts authorized for maternity health care and coordination for the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs4 7c7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,community maternity care providers ,the term community maternity care providers means maternity care providers located at non-,department facilities who provide maternity care to veterans under section #agjc of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 or any other law administered by the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs4 7#b7 ,non-,department facilities ,the term non-,department facilities has the meaning given that term in section #agja of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4 #d4 ,report on maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among pregnant and postpartum 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 ,committee on ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,senate and the ,committee on ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,house of ,representatives1 and make publicly available1 a report on maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among pregnant and postpartum veterans1 with a particular focus on racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes for veterans4 7b7 ,matters included ,the report under subsection 7a7 shall include the following3 7#a7 ,to the extent practicable-- 7,a7 the number of pregnant and postpartum 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 pregnant and postpartum veterans2 7,c7 the number of cases of severe maternal morbidity among pregnant and postpartum veterans in the most recent year of available data2 7,d7 an assessment of the racial and ethnic disparities in maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity rates among pregnant and postpartum veterans2 7,e7 identification of the causes of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity that are unique to veterans1 including post-traumatic stress disorder1 military sexual trauma1 and infertility or miscarriages that may be caused by service in the ,armed ,forces2 7,f7 identification of the causes of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity that are unique to veterans from racial and ethnic minority groups and such other at-risk populations as the ,comptroller ,general considers appropriate2 7,g7 identification of any correlations between the former rank of veterans and their maternal health outcomes2 7,h7 the number of veterans who have been diagnosed with infertility by a health care provider of the ,veterans ,health ,administration each year in the most recent five years1 disaggregated by age1 race1 ethnicity1 sex1 marital status1 and geographical location2 7,i7 the number of veterans who have received a clinical diagnosis of unexplained infertility by a health care provider of the ,veterans ,health ,administration each year in the most recent five years2 and 7,j7 an assessment of the extent to which the rate of incidence of clinically diagnosed infertility among veterans compare or differ to the rate of incidence of clinically diagnosed infertility among the civilian population4 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 pregnant and postpartum veterans who-- 7,a7 have health care coverage through the ,department2 7,b7 are enrolled in the ,,tricare program 7as defined in section #ajgb of title #aj1 ,united ,states ,code72 7,c7 have employer-based or private insurance2 7,d7 are enrolled in the ,medicaid program under title ,,xix of the ,social ,security ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #acif et seq472 7,e7 are eligible to receive health care furnished by-- 7i7 the ,indian ,health ,service2 7ii7 ,tribal health programs2 or 7iii7 urban ,indian organizations2 or 7,f7 are uninsured4 7#c7 ,recommendations for legislative and administrative actions to increase access to mental and behavioral health care for pregnant and postpartum veterans who screen positively for maternal mental or behavioral health conditions4 7#d7 ,recommendations to address homelessness1 food insecurity1 poverty1 and related issues among pregnant and postpartum veterans4 7#e7 ,recommendations on how to effectively educate maternity care providers on best practices for providing maternity care services to veterans that addresses the unique maternal health care needs of veteran populations4 7#f7 ,recommendations to reduce maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among pregnant and postpartum veterans and to address racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes for each of the groups described in subparagraphs 7,a7 through 7,f7 of paragraph 7#b74 7#g7 ,recommendations to improve coordination of care between the ,department and non-,department facilities for pregnant and postpartum veterans1 including recommendations to improve-- 7,a7 health record interoperability2 and 7,b7 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 staff of 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 ,to the extent applicable1 an assessment of potential causes of or explanations for lower maternal mortality rates among veterans who have health care coverage through the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs compared to maternal mortality rates in the general population of the ,united ,states4 7#aj7 ,any other information the ,comptroller ,general determines appropriate with respect to the reduction of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among pregnant and postpartum veterans and to address racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes for veterans4 7c7 ,definitions ,in this section1 the terms ,tribal health program and urban ,indian organization have the meanings given those terms in section #d of the ,indian ,health ,care ,improvement ,act 7#be ,u4,s4,c4 #afjc74 ,passed the ,senate ,october #g1 #bjba4,secretary