§ 294s — Rural Maternal And Obstetric Care Training Demonstration

(a) The Secretary shall award grants to accredited schools of allopathic medicine, osteopathic medicine, and nursing, and other appropriate health professional training programs, to establish a training demonstration program to support— (1) training for physicians, medical residents, fellows, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, certified nurse midwives, relevant home visiting workforce professionals and paraprofessionals, or other professionals who meet relevant State training and licensing requirements, as applicable, to reduce preventable maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity by improving prenatal care, labor care, birthing, and postpartum care in rural community-based settings; and (2) developing recommendations for such training programs. (b) To be eligible to receive a grant under subsection (a), an entity shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require. (1) A recipient of a grant under subsection (a)— (A) shall use the grant funds to plan, develop, and operate a training program to provide prenatal care, labor care, birthing, and postpartum care in rural areas; and (B) may use the grant funds to provide additional support for the administration of the program or to meet the costs of projects to establish, maintain, or improve faculty development, or departments, divisions, or other units necessary to implement such training. (2) The recipient of a grant under subsection (a) shall ensure that training programs carried out under the grant are evidence-based and address improving prenatal care, labor care, birthing, and postpartum care in rural areas, and such programs may include training on topics such as— (A) maternal mental health, including perinatal depression and anxiety; (B) substance use disorders; (C) social determinants of health that affect individuals living in rural areas; and (D) improving the provision of prenatal care, labor care, birthing, and postpartum care for racial and ethnic minority populations, including with respect to perceptions and biases that may affect the approach to, and provision of, care. (A) The Secretary shall evaluate the outcomes of the demonstration program under this section. (B) Recipients of a grant under subsection (a) shall submit to the Secretary performance metrics and other related data in order to evaluate the program for the report described in paragraph (2). (2) Not later than January 1, 2026, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that includes— (A) an analysis of the effects of the demonstration program under this section on the quality, quantity, and distribution of maternal health care services, including prenatal care, labor care, birthing, and postpartum care services, and the demographics of the recipients of those services; (B) an analysis of maternal and infant health outcomes (including quality of care, morbidity, and mortality) before and after implementation of the program in the communities served by entities participating in the demonstration; and (C) recommendations on whether the demonstration program should be continued. (e) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027.