Equipping the South for Maternal and Child Health
SAPHL empowers public health advocates and trusted community leaders with the evidence and tools needed to drive policy change. To improve birth outcomes and support thriving families, we must address substantive regional barriers through targeted, local interventions.
Direction
Our strategy centers on supporting local maternal and child health coalitions. Through our defined action areas, we focus on targeted policies to eliminate barriers to holistic, continuous care for moms and babies.
Our action areas
Extending health care access
The Challenge: Rural and underserved communities face growing maternity care deserts and facility closures.
The Intervention: Expand telehealth infrastructure and deploy mobile care units designed with deep community buy-in.
The Result: Frictionless access to prenatal and postpartum care regardless of geographic location.
Building workforce
The Challenge: Severe shortages in maternal care providers, including OB/GYNs, midwives, and doulas, strain existing systems.
The Intervention: Policies that fund workforce development, support alternative care models, and diversify the care team.
The Result: A robust, culturally congruent maternal health workforce that meets the community where they are.
Addressing social drivers
The Challenge: Fragmented systems leave social drivers—like housing, nutrition, and transportation—unaddressed.
The Intervention: Integrate care coordination models and fund community health workers to bridge clinical and social supports.
The Result: Comprehensive, holistic support networks that directly improve birth outcomes and family stability.
Addressing coverage barriers
The Challenge: Coverage gaps and complex enrollment processes leave families uninsured during the vulnerable postpartum year.
The Intervention: Advocate for continuous Medicaid coverage and streamline multi-program enrollment for moms and babies.
The Result: Uninterrupted, reliable health coverage that protects the physical and financial health of growing families.
Insights
Local data makes abstract regional problems concrete. Use the map below to explore county-level evidence that supports your specific MCH policy and implementation recommendations.
Note on MCH data reporting & methodology:
- Metric variances: Maternal and infant health indicators—such as rates of adequate prenatal care or severe maternal morbidity—can vary based on state-level reporting structures and vital statistics timelines.
- Medicaid unwinding: Current coverage data may be subject to rapid fluctuations due to ongoing Medicaid redeterminations across Southern states, temporarily impacting the accuracy of real-time uninsured rates for postpartum individuals.
County strategy statement
Connections
Building stronger maternal and child health systems requires collaboration. Join the SAPHL Network to connect with local advocates, providers, and experts across the region. Each state meets monthly and provides a space for collaboration and sharing around MCH issues across your state.
Upcoming meetings
- First Tuesdays — North Carolina branch meeting
- First Thursdays — Georgia branch meeting
- Second Mondays — Alabama branch meeting
- Fourth Wednesdays — Tennessee branch meeting
- Fourth Thursdays — South Carolina branch meeting
Skills
Information alone isn't enough. Transform evidence into action by developing the advocacy and communication skills necessary to secure resources for moms and babies in your communities.