Providing Prenatal Care for Patients with Limited Medical Insurance Coverage

Abstract

Newer immigrants to the United States, whether undocumented, recent legal immigrants, those here on temporary visas, or migrant workers, are far less likely than native-born residents of the United States to have reliable health insurance. This entire group of patients is then at risk for delayed or absent medical care. Our study focused on what effects a free, quality prenatal care program had upon prenatal care and delivery outcomes for an underinsured population, primarily of immigrant women. With a recent change in Iowa’s eligibility criteria for Presumptive Medicaid (referred to as Temporary Medicaid), pregnant patients who have less than a 5-year legal permanent residency status, undocumented status, or out-of-country resident status can receive up to two months of covered antepartum care, whereas previously eligible for coverage for the entirety of their pregnancy. With that reality, several faculty members from the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Iowa started a weekly prenatal care clinic in collaboration with the longstanding Iowa City Free Medical Clinic. This study sought to compare outcomes for patients who utilized only Temporary Medicaid to those who also had access to this prenatal free medical clinic (FMC), as well as to compare outcomes for the FMC program to typical Medicaid patients who had access to full prenatal care. Compared to the Temporary Medicaid-only group, our FMC patients had a significantly greater number of prenatal visits. This increased access of continuity prenatal care led to increased screening for gestational diabetes, receipt of recommended vaccinations, and screening for group B streptococcus. Our effort has shown that expanding prenatal healthcare coverage to this underinsured population can greatly increase the quality of maternity care and reduce the potential for high-risk pregnancies, bettering the care for these pregnant women and their newborns.