Latest news with #MavenClinic
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Some workers are job hopping for fertility benefits. Employers are trying to keep up.
Laura Muller started looking for a new job in 2023 to give her dream of starting a family a fighting chance. A 38-year-old licensed veterinary technician, Muller loved the field but was willing to take just about any job that would cover in vitro fertilization, or IVF, treatment, be it Starbucks or Tractor Supply. In job interviews, she said, one of the first questions she'd ask was: 'Tell me more about your fertility coverage.' She landed a job as an emergency veterinary nurse, and after four rounds of intrauterine insemination − a fertility treatment that places prepared sperm in a uterus − and four egg retrievals, Muller's first embryo transfer was a success. She's expecting a boy in June. 'I'm just thankful we were able to get here,' said Muller, who lives in Philadelphia. 'I feel like it was a Herculean effort, but it was definitely worth it.' As baby boomers retire and a new generation of workers takes center stage in the workforce, employers are reconsidering what it means to care for their employees' well-being. Fertility care coverage and child care benefits are among the most expensive for companies. But they're also some of the most sought-after perks for millennials, who represent the largest segment of the U.S. workforce, and employers are noticing. Maven Clinic, a virtual clinic for women's and family health, recently surveyed more than 1,500 human resources leaders and nearly 4,000 full-time employees and found 69% of employees have taken, considered or might take a new job for better reproductive and family benefits. The same percentage of employers plan to increase their family health benefits vendors in the next two to three years. Gallagher, an insurance and employee benefits consulting company, produced similar findings in its own report, when 63% of the nearly 700 employees surveyed said they would change jobs for better benefits. Among millennials, nearly 40% identify as parents and prioritize family-forming benefits, child care and education support. Overall employee interest in pregnancy and fertility resources jumped from 5% in 2022 to 13% in 2024. It's not just women who need access to fertility care, Maven Clinic CEO Kate Ryder said. Her company started providing at-home sperm analysis kits last year, and she said they've been hugely popular. The definition of family, and how adults are starting ones of their own, is evolving, said Kathleen Schulz, Gallagher's global innovation leader for organizational well-being. There are single parents, blended families, adopted children and surrogates who need care, too. 'The way that we think about family now, it's different than the way that we thought about it 20 years ago,' Schulz said. 'And employers kind of need to lean into that in a more inclusive way. The struggle is that the way that an employer may want to define family may be a little bit different than the regulatory bodies that are defining families." More: 'You never catch up.' How caring for their family widens the pay gap for women Barbara Collura, CEO and president of the infertility advocacy organization Resolve, said the organization 'absolutely' sees people switching companies, moving states or taking on a second job to access fertility benefits. 'If you are struggling to build your family, and you have been told that the only option for you to have a chance at having children is a medical treatment that is going to be, out of pocket, $15,000 to $25,000 for one cycle ... that's a tall order,' Collura said. Mercer, another consulting firm, also found more employers are covering IVF and other family benefits like paid parental leave. Mercer's survey of 630 U.S. organizations found 62% now offer bereavement leave for pregnancy loss, and 58% offer bereavement leave for miscarriage. Taylor Capuano, who co-founded Cakes Body, a bra alternative brand, with her sister, said offering women- and family-focused benefits is a top priority for their company, which has grown in the past year from 10 to 30 employees. A video of the sisters announcing full child care coverage for employees with kids too young to go to school went viral in May. Women who responded to the video were emotional, Capuano said. It proved to her that most women don't feel seen or heard by their employers. She knows she didn't when she worked in corporate America. 'I just remember looking at my expenses, being like: 'Wait a minute. I don't think I'm going to be able to make sense of staying in the workforce.' Because I was pretty much breaking even on working versus paying for my child care," she said. More: 'No mute button for a toddler': How thousands of parents juggle remote work and parenting 'It was always a goal of mine to be able to create an environment where I, personally, could afford to live and be a mom. But I never really expected to have employees.' Capuano said she and her sister are still trying to figure out best practices for creating conducive working environments for parents. They encourage flexible work hours so parents can schedule work around family responsibilities. They also offer four months of full-paid parental leave, which is a rarity. And Cakes Body's new child care stipend policy covers up to $3,000 a month, which is enough to support two kids' child care in most states. Cakes Body doesn't have fertility care coverage yet, Capuano said, but she and her sister 'want to do more' for women and parents. Fertility treatment coverage is becoming increasingly common: IVF was covered by 47% of large employers with at least 500 employees in 2024, up two percentage points from the year before, according to a Mercer survey of more than 2,000 employers. Of the largest companies – those with 20,000 or more employees – 70% cover IVF. 'Some of it has to do with attraction and retention,' said Lindsay Bower, senior principal in Mercer's health and benefits team. 'Especially in industries that are really competing for talent.' The most common reason why employers don't provide fertility care coverage, according to Gallagher's report, is cost. Maven Clinic's report also found the financial burden of fertility care has reached a breaking point. Employers who already provide fertility care coverage are concerned about rising costs, and 28% of employees pursuing fertility treatment incurred debt to cover the cost. Christina Parker understands the eye-popping cost of IVF all too well. After an endocervical cancer diagnosis in 2021 resulted in the loss of her fallopian tubes, Parker knew the more affordable intrauterine insemination would no longer be an option; she and her wife would have to pay up for IVF so they could carry a child. Parker worried out-of-pocket costs would be out of her price range. The fertility treatment – in which eggs are collected from an ovary, fertilized by sperm in a lab and then transferred to a uterus – can run more than $10,000 a cycle, and some patients require multiple cycles for a successful birth. After some digging, she learned pharmacy chain Walgreens offers fertility coverage, and there was a location 10 minutes from her home in Asheville, North Carolina, that was hiring. The pharmacy technician role paid $6 less an hour than her hotel job and Parker had no industry experience, but she decided to give it a shot. It worked. Parker was hired and started IVF in 2022, and after two unsuccessful rounds, she gave birth to a son in May 2023. Parker, 29, estimates she and her wife spent about $7,000 out of pocket for three IVF cycles, including preimplantation genetic testing. An estimated $75,000 was covered by insurance. Now, she said, she looks to see if potential employers have fertility benefits or maternity care before applying. 'If you don't, chances are I'm not going to.' Madeline Mitchell's role covering women and the caregiving economy at USA TODAY is supported by a partnership with Pivotal Ventures and Journalism Funding Partners. Funders do not provide editorial input. Reach Madeline at memitchell@ and @maddiemitch_ on X. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fertility, child care benefits top of mind for millennial workers Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Cision Canada
05-06-2025
- Health
- Cision Canada
Bridging the Gap: Manulife Partners with Maven Clinic to Bring Women's and Family Health Services to Members Français
New partnership will help provide support and navigation for women, spanning fertility and family building, maternity and newborn care, parenting and pediatrics, and menopause and midlife TORONTO, June 5, 2025 /CNW/ - Manulife Canada is excited to announce it has partnered with Maven Clinic ®, the world's largest virtual clinic for women's and family health 1. This partnership will provide eligible Manulife Group Benefits plan members with unlimited access to Maven's award-winning digital programs for tailored support 2. Maven specializes in supporting women and families through some of their most important stages of life, including fertility, family building and planning; maternity and newborn care; parenting and pediatrics; and menopause and midlife. The need to prioritize women's health has never been more apparent. Research indicates narrowing gaps in women's health care could contribute as much as $1 trillion per year to the global economy by 2040 3. Globally, women spend 25 per cent more time in poor health compared to men, with nearly half of this health burden occurring during their prime working years—often limiting their ability to earn an income and support themselves and their families 4. In Canada, unmanaged menopause symptoms during critical career years (ages 40 to 55) cost the Canadian economy $3.5 billion annually and cause 1 in 10 women to leave the workforce 5. "Together with Maven, Manulife is not just responding to gaps in women's and family health—we're redefining what comprehensive support looks like during key life transitions like family planning and menopause," says Jennifer Foubert, Head of Product, Manulife Group Benefits. "We're proud to be the first insurance company in Canada to offer these important programs through Maven that will help our members access personalized and holistic support and navigation when they feel they need it most, wherever they are on their journey." Beginning this fall, Manulife Group Benefits plan members, whose employers enroll in Maven, will have 24/7 virtual access to Maven's platform, connecting them to a global network of providers across more than 30 specialties who speak more than 35 languages. While this is not an alternative for visiting in-person health care providers, with more than one in five Canadians without access to a primary care physician 6, Maven can help women and families navigate the Canadian healthcare system through its digital platform and help members find in-person care. Maven's diverse network of providers helps ensure that non-medical support is accessible and inclusive for individuals from all backgrounds. Plan members and their eligible dependants will benefit from unlimited access to virtual care, delivering high-quality, personalized support tailored to their unique health needs 2. "We are excited to partner with Manulife to help women and families receive comprehensive, personalized care," said Stephanie Glenn, Chief Commercial Officer at Maven Clinic. "As an organization, we set out to address the fragmented experiences women and families often face in health care through offering a holistic approach with tailored support, leading to better health outcomes and smoother journeys through life's critical phases. By expanding our global footprint with partners like Manulife, Maven is thrilled to deliver personalized guidance and assistance to Manulife members across Canada." Maven's offerings are built around four key pillars that most impact women's and family health: Fertility & Family Building: helping individuals and couples navigate their family-building journeys, including support for preconception and trying to conceive, fertility treatment like IVF and IUI, adoption, and surrogacy. Maternity & Newborn Care: extensive support during pregnancy, postpartum, and return to work, including access to virtual, non-medical consultation with participating OB-GYNs, doulas, lactation consultants, career coaches, and mental health providers. Maven also provides compassionate support for individuals experiencing loss. Parenting & Pediatrics: this program provides resources and consultations for parenting challenges and pediatric care, so families have access to the support they may need as their children grow. Menopause & Midlife Health: provides support through every phase of the menopause journey for women and midlife health support for men, including hormonal changes, mental health, sexual health, and overall well-being. Maven is a global leader in women's and family health, serving members across more than 175 countries. Beginning this fall, eligible Group Benefits Members and their eligible dependants will be able to access Maven through the Manulife Mobile app or plan member site. For more information, visit About Manulife Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping our customers make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we operate as Manulife across Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, providing financial advice and insurance for individuals, groups and businesses. Through Manulife Wealth & Asset Management, we offer global investment, financial advice, and retirement plan services to individuals, institutions, and retirement plan members worldwide. At the end of 2024, we had more than 37,000 employees, over 109,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving over 36 million customers. We trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges, and under '945' in Hong Kong. Not all offerings are available in all jurisdictions. For additional information, please visit About Maven Maven is the world's largest virtual clinic for women and families on a mission to make healthcare work for all of us. Maven's award-winning digital programs provide clinical, emotional, and financial support all in one platform, spanning fertility & family building, maternity & newborn care, parenting & pediatrics, and menopause & midlife. More than 2,000 employers and health plans trust Maven's end-to-end platform to improve clinical outcomes, reduce healthcare costs, and provide equity in benefits programs. Recognized for innovation and industry leadership, Maven has been named to the Time 100 Most Influential Companies, CNBC Disruptor 50, Fast Company Most Innovative Companies, and FORTUNE Best Places to Work. Founded in 2014 by CEO Kate Ryder, Maven has raised more than $425 million in funding from top healthcare and technology investors including General Catalyst, Sequoia, Dragoneer Investment Group, Oak HC/FT, StepStone Group, Icon Ventures, and Lux Capital. To learn more about Maven, visit us at Maven is a registered trademark of Maven Clinic Co. All rights reserved. Maven Media Contact: Katy Geguchadze [email protected] _______________________ 1 Maven Clinic, Meet Maven, 2024 2 Available only to Group Benefits Members whose employers sign up to offer this support. 3 McKinsey Health Institute, 2024 4 McKinsey Health Institute, 2024 5 Menopause Foundation of Canada 6 OurCare. Primary Care Needs, 2024 SOURCE Manulife Financial Corporation
USA Today
29-05-2025
- Health
- USA Today
The White House wants women to have more babies. They're ignoring part of the problem — men.
The White House wants women to have more babies. They're ignoring part of the problem — men. Show Caption Hide Caption Has the pronatalism movement gone mainstream? The Trump administration is considering a baby bonus. Is it enough to encourage people to have more kids? America's birth rate has been on a steady decline since 2007, and pronatalists − both in and outside the White House − are determined to raise it. But how? President Donald Trump and his administration have reportedly begun wading through various proposals aimed at reversing America's declining birthrate. Per the New York Times, some ideas that have been floated include scholarships for married people and parents, a one-time $5,000 cash "baby bonus" for mothers and government-funded education on menstruation and ovulation. One pronatalist activist also proposed that mothers of six or more receive a 'National Medal of Motherhood." And calls for women to bear more children aren't just inside the White House – they've infiltrated the cultural zeitgeist. Trad wives, or 'homestead creators,' are making waves on social media for romanticizing the nuclear family unit that Trump and Vice President JD Vance have lauded. But when partners struggle to conceive, the burden is rarely distributed evenly between men and women. Still, fertility experts say we're missing a key component of the conversation – male infertility. Research shows that for heterosexual couples trying to conceive, when the cause of infertility can be attributed to a known factor, it's a roughly 50-50 split between male and female factors. The male partner was found to be solely responsible in about 20% of infertility cases, and a contributing factor in another 30-40% of all cases. Male and female infertility factors often coexist, yet a high number of men do not undergo testing before their female partner begins IVF, according to Dr. Neel Shah, the Chief Medical Officer at Maven Clinic, a virtual clinic for women's and family health. 'Our healthcare system generally seems better designed for men than for women, but men are more reluctant to engage with it in the first place,' he says. 'It's relatively common for women to go through entire fertility journeys, and the men to never be tested. But when you don't treat the couple as a unit, the burden is disproportionately on one person.' 1 in 6 people are affected by infertility, but women often carry the burden According to a 2025 report released by Maven Clinic that surveyed 1,000 women struggling with infertility, 65% said they felt that the burden of fertility lay almost entirely with them, not with their partner. 'In the design of the healthcare system, but even more broadly, socially, we have unfortunately put the entire burden on women,' Shah says. 'They're the ones who get tested first. They bear the most emotionally. But the science is very clear, infertility is just as likely to be caused by male factors as female ones.' Characterizing fertility solely as a woman's issue is part of a 'broader cultural misunderstanding,' limits the accessibility of fertility care and contributes to the feelings of shame some women experience when struggling with infertility. Trump wants a baby boom. Is his 'pronatalism' agenda missing the point? Men are more reluctant to do fertility testing Women have biological markers, such as their menstrual cycle, that serve as a checkpoint for reproductive health. Men, on the other hand, don't have an obvious, visual indicator for sperm health. To test male infertility, doctors can look at the concentration of sperm and motility, meaning how active the sperm are. This usually involves going to a clinic and producing a semen sample, which Shah says many men are reluctant to do. 'Men like having things to do and appreciate being able to support their partners,' he says. 'But in many cases ... they're not being engaged in a way that makes them comfortable.' In some cases when male infertility is a contributing or sole factor, in-vitro fertilization (IVF) is still necessary. However, it should be done using intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), which involves injecting a single, healthy sperm into an egg. 'It's the world's tiniest surgery,' Shah says. Some factors contributing to male infertility are lifestyle-based; things like wearing tight underwear and sitting in hot tubs actually can decrease sperm count. Other factors, such as taking testosterone, can work as a contraceptive, just like estrogen in women. 'Men think they're taking testosterone to make themselves more virile, but it's doing the opposite,' Shah explains. Women want parental leave, greater financial incentives to raise the birth rate In a video with over 330,000 views, a pair of parents expressed their shock at some of the White House's suggestions for raising the birth rate. "Obviously no women were involved in this council that's coming up with these ideas," a man says in the video, as his wife reads him some of the proposals and they react to each one. She laments, 'Not like, free health care or, I don't know, paid maternity leave." Jennifer Sciubba, a demographer and the author of the book "8 Billion and Counting: How Sex, Death, and Migration Shape Our World," previously told USA TODAY the reasons for America's declining birthrate are vast and complex. For starters, more people feel they simply can't afford to have families amid economic uncertainty and rising housing prices. Couples seeking IVF are often met with high prices, leading some to partake in "medical tourism" for cheaper fertility care abroad. Sciubba added that more couples are also delaying marriage, shortening their window to conceive naturally with their spouse. More people also don't see children as necessary to a fulfilling life. Shah advises against framing fertility in moral and political terms. "It sends the message that women's bodies are public battlegrounds," he cautions. "It could end up overriding some of the real medical struggles (and) emotional distress that people have when they're trying to build their trying to build their family." Contributing: Charles Trepany, Jonathan Limehouse
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Some workers are job hopping for fertility benefits. Employers are trying to keep up.
Laura Muller started looking for a new job in 2023 to give her dream of starting a family a fighting chance. A 38-year-old licensed veterinary technician, Muller loved the field but was willing to take just about any job that would cover in vitro fertilization, or IVF, treatment, be it Starbucks or Tractor Supply. In job interviews, she said, one of the first questions she'd ask was: 'Tell me more about your fertility coverage.' She landed a new job as an emergency veterinary nurse, and after four rounds of intrauterine insemination − a fertility treatment that places prepared sperm in a uterus − and four egg retrievals, Muller's first embryo transfer was a success. She's expecting a boy in June. 'I'm just thankful we were able to get here,' Muller, of Philadelphia, said. 'I feel like it was a Herculean effort, but it was definitely worth it.' As baby boomers retire and a new generation of workers takes center stage in the workforce, employers are reconsidering what it means to care for their employees' well-being. Fertility care coverage and child care benefits are among the most expensive for companies. But they're also some of the most sought-after perks for millennials, who represent the largest segment of the U.S. workforce, and employers are noticing. Maven Clinic, a virtual clinic for women's and family health, recently surveyed more than 1,500 human resources leaders and nearly 4,000 full-time employees and found 69% of employees have taken, considered or might take a new job for better reproductive and family benefits. The same percentage of employers plan to increase their family health benefits vendors in the next two to three years. Gallagher, an insurance and employee benefits consulting company, produced similar findings in its own report, when 63% of the nearly 700 employees surveyed said they would change jobs for better benefits. Among millennials, nearly 40% identify as parents and prioritize family-forming benefits, child care and education support. Overall employee interest in pregnancy and fertility resources jumped from 5% in 2022 to 13% in 2024. It's not just women who need access to fertility care, Maven Clinic CEO Kate Ryder said. Her company started providing at-home sperm analysis kits last year, and she said they've been hugely popular. The definition of family, and how adults are starting ones of their own, is evolving, said Kathleen Schulz, Gallagher's global innovation leader for organizational well-being. There are single parents, blended families, adopted children and surrogates who need care, too. 'The way that we think about family now, it's different than the way that we thought about it 20 years ago,' Schulz said. 'And employers kind of need to lean into that in a more inclusive way. The struggle is that the way that an employer may want to define family may be a little bit different than the regulatory bodies that are defining families." More: 'You never catch up.' How caring for their family widens the pay gap for women Barbara Collura, CEO and President of infertility advocacy organization Resolve, said the organization 'absolutely' sees people switching companies, moving states or taking on a second job to access fertility benefits. 'If you are struggling to build your family, and you have been told that the only option for you to have a chance at having children is a medical treatment that is going to be, out of pocket, $15,000 to $25,000 for one cycle... that's a tall order,' Collura said. Mercer, another consulting firm, also found more employers are covering IVF and other family benefits like paid parental leave. Mercer's survey of 630 U.S. organizations found 62% now offer bereavement leave for pregnancy loss, and 58% offer bereavement leave for miscarriage. Taylor Capuano, who co-founded Cakes Body, a bra alternative brand, with her sister, said offering women- and family-focused benefits is a top priority for their company, which has grown in the last year from 10 to 30 employees. A video of the sisters announcing full child care coverage for employees with kids too young to go to school went viral in May. Women who responded to the video were emotional, Capuano said. It proved to her that most women workers don't feel seen or heard by their employers. She knows she didn't when she worked in corporate America. 'I just remember looking at my expenses, being like, 'Wait a minute. I don't think I'm going to be able to make sense of staying in the workforce.' Because I was pretty much breaking even on working versus paying for my child care,' she said. More: 'No mute button for a toddler': How thousands of parents juggle remote work and parenting 'It was always a goal of mine to be able to create an environment where I, personally, could afford to live and be a mom,' she said. 'But I never really expected to have employees.' Capuano said she and her sister are still trying to figure out best practices for creating conducive working environments for parents. They encourage flexible work hours so parents can schedule work around family responsibilities. They also offer four months of full-paid parental leave, which is a rarity. And Cakes Body's new child care stipend policy covers up to $3,000 per month, which is enough to support two kids' child care in most states. Cakes Body doesn't have fertility care coverage yet, Capuano said, but she and her sister 'want to do more' for women and parent workers. Fertility treatment coverage is becoming 'increasingly common,' with IVF covered by 47% of large employers with at least 500 employees in 2024, up two percentage points from the year prior, according to a Mercer survey of more than 2,000 employers. Of the largest companies – those with 20,000 or more employees – 70% cover IVF. 'Some of it has to do with attraction and retention,' said Lindsay Bower, senior principal in Mercer's health and benefits team. 'Especially in industries that are really competing for talent.' The most common reason why employers don't provide fertility care coverage, according to Gallagher's report, is cost. Maven Clinic's report also found the financial burden of fertility care has reached a breaking point. Employers who already provide fertility care coverage are concerned about rising costs, and 28% of employees pursuing fertility treatment incurred debt to cover the cost. Christina Parker understands the eye-popping cost of IVF all too well. After an endocervical cancer diagnosis in 2021 resulted in the loss of her fallopian tubes, Parker knew the more affordable intrauterine insemination would no longer be an option; she and her wife would have to pay up for IVF in order to carry a child. Parker worried out-of-pocket costs would be out of her price range. The fertility treatment – in which eggs are collected from an ovary, fertilized by sperm in a lab and then transferred to a uterus – can run upwards of $10,000 per cycle, with some patients requiring multiple cycles for a successful birth. After some digging, she learned pharmacy chain Walgreens offers fertility coverage, and there was a location 10 minutes from her Asheville, North Carolina, home that was hiring. The pharmacy technician role paid $6 less per hour than her hotel job and Parker had no industry experience, but she decided to give it a shot. It worked. Parker was hired and started IVF in 2022, and after two unsuccessful rounds, she gave birth to a son in May 2023. Parker, 29, estimates she and her wife spent about $7,000 out of pocket for three IVF cycles, including preimplantation genetic testing. An estimated $75,000 was covered by insurance. Now, she said, she looks to see if potential employers have fertility benefits or maternity care before applying. 'If you don't, chances are I'm not going to,' Parker said. Madeline Mitchell's role covering women and the caregiving economy at USA TODAY is supported by a partnership with Pivotal Ventures and Journalism Funding Partners. Funders do not provide editorial input. Reach Madeline at memitchell@ and @maddiemitch_ on X. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fertility, child care benefits top of mind for millennial workers Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
The Guardian
17-04-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Black maternal health is about more than survival – it's about thriving
Maternal deaths have recently dropped in the US – that is, unless you're Black. Black women continue to face the highest rates of maternal mortality in our country. To be Black, pregnant and hopeful in the US is to hold on to life with a fierce and unyielding grip against devastating odds. Black women are navigating pregnancies in a healthcare system that too often ignores our pain, dismisses our concerns, fails to value our lives and underserves us throughout the entire journey to motherhood. As we mark Black maternal health week, the path to becoming a mom remains fraught with pain points for Black women. For too many Black women, the journey to motherhood may start with dismissive doctors and racially motivated mistreatment: a soon-to-be mother's voice is silenced in the very spaces meant to protect her health. The experience of giving birth is compounded by systemic inequities that compromise her safety and dignity. Stillbirth and miscarriage rates remain disproportionately high due to inadequate prenatal support, while unequal pain treatment leaves Black mothers suffering in silence – ignored or under-treated. A heightened tendency for unnecessary C-sections reflects deep-rooted biases in medical decision-making, exacerbated by implicit racial bias. When the baby is born, the postpartum period is often marked by systemic gaps in care that leave Black women vulnerable to physical, emotional and financial strain. Limited access to postpartum mental health support means many struggle with anxiety and depression without adequate professional guidance, worsening the already heightened maternal mortality rates among Black women. The absence of comprehensive postpartum resources leaves Black mothers navigating recovery, newborn care and maternal health largely on their own, reinforcing a cycle of isolation and inequity. It takes a village to raise a child – and to protect an expecting mother. So while we've heard many grim stories through our research at the health advocacy organization United States of Care, we've also heard stories of communities banding together to meet the needs of Black women and mothers. Across the country, community-based maternal health organizations are building capacity and cultural responsiveness in maternal healthcare that offers what I like to call 'bright spots'. These bright spots are not just exceptions, but blueprints for the rest of the country. An expecting mother may turn to culturally aligned healthcare providers who offer specialized care, fostering a deep sense of trust, support and security for both her and her baby. Doulas can improve her experience by providing personalized care that is tailored to her and guides her through the pregnancy journey. Additionally, telehealth like the Maven Clinic and Pomelo Care can promote racially concordant care, provide access to interdisciplinary care teams, and bridge access to care gaps. And tech innovations the Irth app, a 'Yelp-like' app that offers provider reviews from Black and brown women, can empower her to make informed decisions about her care. When the baby arrives, she may reach out to organizations focused on addressing maternal mental health, like the Houston-based Shades of Blue Project, which offers structured journaling support groups for Black women and aims to decrease the stigma related to seeking mental health treatment. She may seek a doula or lactation consultant that supports her with her breastfeeding challenges or access local programs like Breastfeeding Awareness and Empowerment Café, a Philadelphia-based community lactation and perinatal mental health support program that is replicable, scalable, peer-driven and low-barrier intervention that has the potential to improve outcomes. In countless neighborhoods across the US, community organizations on and offline are creating lifelines for Black women where our healthcare system falls short. These local efforts provide a national model of cultural responsiveness, holistic care and trust building that we hope to see innovators, policymakers and leaders across the country adopt. As we recognize these local initiatives, it's important to consider what sustains them: strong community ties, committed leadership and diverse funding streams. Maternal health solutions must happen both at the bedside and in the halls of power: more policymakers, philanthropists and healthcare institutions must step forward to invest in these models, scaling them while preserving their community-driven success. Black maternal health is about more than survival; it's about thriving. It's about empowering Black mothers to experience joy in their pregnancies, to be supported from preconception all the way through postpartum, and to raise their families in a world that values their lives. Let these bright spots serve as both inspiration and a guide. It's time for Black women to be listened to, cared for and treated with the dignity we've always deserved. We can build a future where the health and wellbeing of Black mothers is no longer an anomaly but a standard. Venice Haynes is a social and behavioral scientist with more than 17 years of public health experience. She is the senior director of research and community engagement for United States of Care
