releases: https://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/media-center/news-releases/bill-to-improve-affordable-care-act-for-pregnant-women-earns-mccaskills-support
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| https://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/media-center/news-releases/bill-to-improve-affordable-care-act-for-pregnant-women-earns-mccaskills-support | Bill to Improve Affordable Care Act for Pregnant Women Earns McCaskill’s Support | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | MO | Claire McCaskill | M001170 | www.mccaskill.senate.gov | legacy | Bill to Improve Affordable Care Act for Pregnant Women Earns McCaskills Support Legislation designates special enrollment period, more health care options for pregnant women Tuesday, November 10, 2015 WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill today announced her support for legislation to improve the Affordable Care Act by expanding health care options to pregnant women to best fit their familys needs. The Healthy Maternity and Obstetric Medicine Act, or Healthy MOM Act, creates a special enrollment period for pregnant women, enabling them to purchase health insurance throughout the year by adding pregnancy as a qualifying life event. Anyone whos had a child knows pregnancy is quite a life event, and one that can change a familys health care needs in sometimes unpredictable ways, McCaskill said. This is a commonsense fix to our health care law to ensure womenespecially those with a child on the wayhave access to health insurance options that work best for them. Currently, the only people deemed eligible to purchase or change their health insurance during a special enrollment period are those who have experienced a qualifying life event such as getting married, giving birth, or adopting a child.However the Affordable Care Act currently does not include pregnancy as a qualifying life event. The Healthy MOM Act would add pregnancy to the list of qualifying life events. McCaskill has supported a number of bipartisan bills to continue improvements to the health care law, including legislation to boost small businesses by giving states flexibility in determining size of small group markets, and has been a vocal supporter of the Affordable Care Act as well as the need to expand Medicaid in Missouri. In early 2015, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office announced that the Affordable Care Actwhich has now been upheld twice by a conservative Supreme Courtwill cost taxpayers substantially less than previously estimated. According to the Associated Press: Underlining a change across the nation, nearly 9 out of 10 adults now have health insurance in an extensive study that also found that the share of adults who lack insurance dropped to 11.9 percent for the first three months of [2015], the lowest level since that survey began its tracking As a result of the law, far fewer families are struggling to pay their medical bills. The law has so far resulted in tens of thousands of fewer preventable patient deaths in hospitals. Most Americans enrolled in Affordable Care Act health coverage report being satisfied with their plans. And contrary to opponents early claims about the economic effects of the law, job growth has continued and the national deficit has continued to decline after the law was implemented. Visit mccaskill.senate.gov/healthcare for more information on the Affordable Care Act. ### Print Email Tweet | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |