NEW AMCHP Resource – Title V: Special Projects of Regional and National Significance (SPRANS) One-Pager 

AMCHP is excited to share the publication of our new one-pager on Title V’s SPRANS program. This one-pager summarizes SPRANS focus areas aimed at addressing high-value MCH priorities and the national impact of SPRANS-funded programs.

If you want to learn more about how to advocate for SPRANS and other critical MCH programs, please reach out to GovtAffairs@amchp.org. 

As a supporter of efforts to improve maternal and child health, the Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs (AMCHP) and the National Healthy Start Association invite you to join us in sending this letter to House and Senate Appropriations leadership in support of $145.25 million for Healthy Start in FY27. To sign on to the Healthy Start letter, please fill out this form. This letter is open to national, state, local/community-based, and academic organizations.

The deadline for this letter is August 21. 

Please reach out to GovtAffairs@amchp.org with any questions.

Congress

• Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Business Meeting (On August 6, the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee voted on the revised Agriculture Act of 2026. It failed passage with a vote of 10 yeas, 11 nays)

• Senate Committee on Appropriations: Continuing Appropriations Act FY 2027 (On August 1, the Senate chamber released text of a continuing resolution that would extend government funding through December 4, 2026)

• Senate Committee on Budget: Medicaid: The Reality (On August 4, the Senate Budget Committee held a hearing on Medicaid's long-term fiscal sustainability and the impacts of recently proposed rules on state budgets and coverage) 

• Senate Committee on Finance: Building a Resilient Health Care Future with Biotechnology (On August 4, the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing examining the evolving role of biotechnology in America's health care system and medical supply chain) 

• Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: Nominations, S. 5038, S. 5046, S. 2511, S. 3010, S. 3589, S. 4097, S. 4689, S. 3333, S. 4965, and S. 3097 (On July 30, the Senate HELP Committee held an executive session to vote on pending administration nominations and consider several key education and labor-related bills, including a bill to prohibit the transfer of certain offices and functions of the Department of Education to other Federal agencies) 

• Senator Chuck Grassley: Grassley, Hassan Reintroduce Bill to Improve Maternal and Child Health Services 

• Senator Lisa Murkowski: Murkowski, Schatz Introduce Major Legislative Package to Support Native Children, Families, and Communities

• Senator Raphael Warnock: Warnock, Scott Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Support Young Parents in Foster Care

Executive Branch

• Department of Agriculture: Food Security in the U.S. - Interactive Charts and Highlights 

• Department of Health and Human Services: HHS Announces HRSA Health Centers Deliver Record-Breaking Care to More Than 32.7 Million Patients 

• Department of Health and Human Services: HHS Secretary Kennedy Secures Pledge from Insurers, Medical Societies, and Providers to Advance National Behavioral Health Quality and Best Practices

• Department of Health and Human Services: Inaccurate Medicaid Managed Care Provider Directories May Limit Enrollees’ Access to Maternal Health Care

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Trends and Characteristics in Gestational Hypertension: United States, 2016–2024

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: National and State Breastfeeding Rates: Data Results

• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services: CMS Launches New State Toolkit to Protect Children with Autism, Strengthen Oversight of Applied Behavior Analysis Services

• Food and Drug Administration: FDA Calls on Infant Formula Industry to Better Safeguard Against Contaminants Introduced through their Supply Chain

• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: SAMHSA Awards $73.2 Million for Mental Health Treatment and Suicide Prevention Programs

• Federal Register: Submission for Office of Management and Budget Review; Child and Family Services Plan, Annual Progress and Services Report, and Annual Budget Expenses Request and Estimated Expenditures (Child and Family Services-101)

• Federal Register: Proposed Data Collection Submitted for Public Comment and Recommendations; CDC's Essentials for Childhood (EfC): Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences through Data to Action

• Federal Register: Proposed Information Collection Activity; National and State Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSSCAW): Site Recruitment and Baseline Data Collection

• Federal Register: Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection: Public Comment Request; Information Collection Request Title: Healthy Start Evaluation and Quality Improvement, OMB No. 0915-0338-Revision

• Federal Register: Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Infant Formula Requirements

• Federal Register: Reducing Federal Burden for Head Start Programs

• Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health: Opinion: Data disruptions put powerful maternal and child health tool at risk 

• New York State Nurses Association: NYSNA Nurses Fight to Save Maternal Health Services in the North Country 

• Old Dominion University: The Faces of Birth: Old Dominion University Researchers Study Doula’s Roles in Maternal and Child Health 

• WESA: This rural Pennsylvania pediatric clinic is reimagining postpartum care 

• University of South Florida: Public health student stresses need to improve lactation room access across USF campus 

Upcoming Events 

• August 7, 3 PM ET – Protect Head Start: What the Proposed Changes to the Performance Standards Mean and How You Can Take Action, a webinar hosted by Start Early, to inform Head Start and early childhood stakeholders about the proposed changes to the Head Start Program Performance Standards, and provide guidance on engaging in the federal public comment process. Learn more and register.

• August 11, 2 PM ET – The Maternal Mental Health Crisis and Why Pregnancy is the Intervention Window, the first session in the six-part Community of Learning (CoL) series by the Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health TA Center and the Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health to support the effective implementation of the AIM Perinatal Mental Health Conditions (PMHC) Patient Safety Bundle with a focus on obstetric and other maternal health providers in the outpatient setting. Learn more and register.

• August 12, 2 PM ET – Scaling Community-Based Models To Improve Rural Maternal and Infant Care, a webinar by Futures Without Violence exploring how to scale successful community-based models, grow the local perinatal workforce, and deliver impact for families in rural communities. Learn more and register. Learn more and register.

• August 18, 12 PM ET – WHA Sexual Health: A Public Health Priority Congressional Briefing, a virtual congressional briefing by Women’s Health Advocates exploring how gaps in education, delayed diagnosis, limited access to care, and persistent stigma impact women's physical health, mental health, fertility, relationships, workforce participation, and overall quality of life. Learn more and register.

• August 18, 1-2 PM ET – Empowering Working Parents: What You Need to Know About the PUMP Act & PWFA, in honor of National Breastfeeding Month, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Department of Labor- Wage and Hour division are hosting a powerful one-hour webinar designed to educate employers, HR professionals, and working parents about two pivotal federal laws: the PUMP Act (Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers) and the PWFA (Pregnant Workers Fairness Act). Learn more and register.

• August 18, 2 PM ET – Better Data, Better Care for AANHPI Families, a virtual webinar by the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Lactation Collaborative in observance of AANHPI Breastfeeding Week with a focus on the importance of data disaggregation to address and support the maternal and child care needs of AANHPI communities. Learn more and register.

• August 27, 3 PM ET – AMCHP 2027 Call for Proposals Webinar, a webinar where you can learn more about the Call for Proposals for the 2027 AMCHP Annual Conference (AMCHP 2027) that is open until September 30. AMCHP 2027, one of the largest gatherings of maternal and child health leaders and thinkers in the U.S., will take place in person in Washington, DC, from March 6 - 9, 2027. Learn more and register.

• August 27, 3 PM ET – Webinar #2 of AMCHP’s Sustaining Programming to Address Perinatal Substance Use Disorder Series: Fiscal Stability as a Pathway to Sustainability, an interactive workshop on strategies, tools, and resources to support long-term program sustainability in the perinatal substance use space. This session will focus on fiscal sustainability and practical strategies to secure the resources needed for long-term program success. Learn more and register.

• August 28-29 – 2026 Perinatal Mental Health Conference, an in-person and virtual convening hosted by Nurturing Mamas Network offering up to 12 NBCC/ASWB continuing education hours to clinicians. Learn more and register.

• September 2, 2-3 PM ET – Creative Solutions for Lactation Accommodation in the Modern Workplace, a workshop by Healthy Horizons exploring the real-world logistics of implementing a successful lactation accommodation program for hybrid, remote, and traveling employees. Learn more and register.

• September 10, 3 PM ET – The Power of Connection: Scaling Maternal Care Through Partnerships, the third session in the four-part Community of Learning (CoL) series by the Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health, examines how leadership, networks, flexibility, and collaboration can equip AIM participating facilities operating in limited-resource environments to implement AIM patient safety bundles (PSB). Learn more and register. 

• September 10-12 – Black Maternal Health Conference and Training Institute, the global maternal health convening hosted by Black Mamas Matter Alliance inviting maternal, perinatal, and reproductive health stakeholders who are seeking to develop professionally, learn, and network. Learn more and register.

• September 17, 12-1 PM ET – Intermediate Levels of Care: Treating Severe Maternal Mental Health Conditions, the first virtual webinar in a four-part series by the Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance. In this session, experts will provide an overview of perinatal Intermediate Levels of Care (ILOCs), who should be referred to them, and how treatment and recovery are achieved in these specialized programs. Learn more and register.

Additional AMCHP Resources

• Visit our Government Affairs webpage for information on our appropriations work, our Federal Policy Agenda, recordings of past Town Halls, and archives of this newsletter. 

• Explore the AMCHP Resource Library. 

• Learn about pending federal legislation to improve MCH from our Maternal & Child Health Bill Tracker. 

• Check out our MCH Policy Essential Series Learning Modules. 

• Discover innovative policies in the MCH Innovations Database. 

• Explore career opportunities at AMCHP and find additional openings in maternal and child health on the AMCHP Career Center. 

• Share the subscribe link for this digest and other AMCHP content with your network so they can stay informed!