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Read. Follow. Verify.Optimizing Postpartum Outcomes Act of 2025
Last action · June 23, 2025: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.Sponsors: Don Bacon and 41 others
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What This Bill Would Do
This bill directs federal health agencies to improve access to pelvic health services for postpartum women through and . It requires new federal guidance for states, a government study on coverage gaps, and the creation of a national education campaign for both patients and healthcare providers.
This bill would change how states manage and coverage for pelvic health services, potentially increasing access to physical therapy and screenings for postpartum women across the country.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Postpartum women
The bill aims to increase their access to pelvic health screenings and physical therapy through Medicaid and CHIP.
State Medicaid agencies
These agencies will receive new federal guidance and technical assistance regarding coverage, screening, and referral practices.
Healthcare professionals
Providers will be the target of new training programs regarding pelvic floor examinations and physical therapy.
Key Facts
- Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue guidance to states on Medicaid and CHIP coverage for pelvic health services within one year.
- Authorizes $2 million annually from 2026 through 2030 for a new federal postpartum pelvic health education campaign.
- Mandates the GAO to conduct a study and report to Congress on coverage gaps for postpartum services within one year.
- Defines 'postpartum period' as the longer of the lactation period or six months following the end of pregnancy.
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- Defines 'covered pelvic health services' as pelvic floor examinations and pelvic health physical therapy.
- Requires the education campaign to train health professionals on pelvic floor exams and physical therapy benefits.
- Requires the education campaign to inform women about how to obtain pelvic floor exams and physical therapy referrals.
- Directs federal guidance to include best practices for payment models and financing options, including the CHIP Health Services Initiative.
- Requires federal guidance to provide standardized terminology and diagnosis codes for pelvic floor dysfunction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What services are covered under this bill?
How long does the 'postpartum period' last under this legislation?
Will this bill provide direct funding to patients?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
2 actions- Jun 23, 2025HouseCommitteeReferred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
- Jun 23, 2025HouseIntroducedIntroduced in House
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
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Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
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Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Focus on Pelvic Health
The bill represents a targeted effort to standardize and expand Medicaid coverage for pelvic health, a specific area of maternal care often excluded from standard postpartum coverage.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.congress.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance65How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy15Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz20Current news / social attention level
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