Pennsylvania ranks 26th among states for maternal mortality rates.
The Pennsylvania Doula Commission, founded in 2021, wants to prepare doulas to eventually join the state Medicaid system. It is offering a scholarship to pay the $50 application fee for perinatal doula certifications.
Juniata is one of the six Pennsylvania counties classified as a “maternity health desert,” according to a March of Dimes report that came out last year. Those are areas that have no hospitals or birth centers offering obstetric care, or any certified OBGYN providers.
By Gabriela Martínez/WITF Rae Johnson-Bundy, CEO of DoulaRightThing and certified doula, Madhumitha Rajakittu – Pudupatti, certified doula and CEO of Guiding Hand Doula, and Dr. Sharee Livingston, Obstetrics and GynecologyChair at UPMC Lititz and co-founder of Diversifying Doulas Initiative, joins us to talk about maternal health care and how doulas are a vital part in making it better.
Around 3,000 households receive home visiting services statewide; advocates say the program only reaches a fraction of eligible families due to funding constraints.
