Your Invitation is In – Building a National Maternal and Child Health Strategy, Together

​Join us on Monday, July 27, at 2:00 PM ET, for a webinar on AMCHP’s proposed National Maternal and Child Health Strategy; the first national strategy for the maternal and child health (MCH) field, by the MCH field. This initiative seeks to unite a broad, big-tent partnership around a shared vision, coordinated policy priorities, and a long-term investment agenda to serve as a north star for MCH in the United States. 

During the call, AMCHP’s CEO, Terrance E. Moore, will: 

• Introduce the strategy and the “why” behind it 
• Present its core elements and parts 
• Share opportunities to engage with the strategy and help shape what comes next 

Congress

• House Committee on Energy & Commerce: Full Committee Markup (On July 20, the House E&C Committee advanced 17 bills, including the Expanding Community Access to Health Services Act; the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act of 2026; the Nutrition Education and Chronic Disease Prevention in Community Health Centers Act of 2026; and the Prior Authorization Accountability Act)

• House Committee on Education & Workforce: Full Committee Markup (On July 21, the House Committee on Education & Workforce advanced 10 bills, including the Fit Future Act)

• House Committee on Appropriations: Continuing Appropriations Act FY 2027 Legislative Text (On July 21, the House of Representatives advanced a continuing resolution that would extend government funding through December 4, 2026)

• Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: Executive session: S. 2355, S. 4189, S. 4974, S. 5026, S. 1414, S. 3788, S. 3794, S. 494, S. 4110, S. 1974, and S. 380 (On July 22, the Senate HELP Committee advanced 13 bills, including the Childhood Diabetes Reduction Act, the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act of 2025, and the Rural Obstetrics Readiness Act)

• Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: Executive session (On July 23, the Senate HELP Committee advanced the nomination of Erica Schwartz to be CDC director. The Committee has postponed the votes for Sean Kaufman who was nominated for Assistant Secretary for Preparedness)

• Congressman Greg Landsman: Landsman Leads Bipartisan Bill to Make Child Care More Accessible 

• Congresswoman Lauren Underwood: Another Momnibus Bill, Underwood’s Bipartisan NIH IMPROVE Act, Passes House 

• Senator Cory Booker: Booker Leads Renewed Push to Combat Maternal Health Crisis with Mamas First Act

Executive Branch

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Provisional Drug Overdose Death Counts 

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Provisional County-Level Drug Overdose Death Counts 

• Health Resources & Services Administration: HRSA Announces National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services

• Federal Register: Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Generic Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request 

• Federal Register: Submission for Office of Management and Budget Review; Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) 

• 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

• Center for American Progress: America’s Child Care Crisis Leaves Many Families Without Access to Licensed Care

• Forbes: Over 80% Of Maternal Deaths In The U.S. Are Preventable. Here’s One Model Showing How 

• University of Pennsylvania, Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics: Why Pediatric Hospitals are Paying More Attention to Caregiver Hunger 

• Society for Maternal and Fetal Medicine: Understanding Maternal Mortality Data and Terminology as an Advocacy Tool 

• Society for Women’s Health Research: National Strategy to Close Women’s Health Gap 

• Urban Institute: Supports for the Head Start Workforce Are Investments in Children and Families

Upcoming Events 

• July 18, 2-3 PM ET – Social Media Series: Geotargeting 101 (Encore Session), a training refresher by the National Collaborative for Infants and Toddlers on how to use geotargeting tools for prenatal-to-three policy campaigns. Learn more and register.

• July 28, 4:30 PM ET – Vote for Kids, an interactive webinar by the Children's Environmental Health Network to inform parents, caregivers, advocates, community members, health care providers, and public and environmental health professionals on identifying and electing political champions of protecting children’s environmental health. Learn more and register.

• August 3, 1 PM ET – PCORI's Biannual Maternal Health Webinar, a webinar hosted by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), presenting an overview of PCORI’s approach to maternal health research and insight from PCORI-funded co-investigators, Drs. Duryea and Nelson from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Learn more and register.

• August 3, 2-3:30 PM ET – National Overview of the Maternal Mental Health Landscape, a briefing by leadership at the Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health presenting a national overview of the maternal mental health landscape, including current prevalence and treatment rates, clinical recommendations, behavioral health integration, quality measures, insurance considerations, the unbundling of maternity care, and emerging federal and state policy initiatives. Learn more and register.

• August 4, 2-3 PM ET – Making Policymakers Pay Attention to PN3 Housing and Homelessness, a webinar by the National Collaborative for Infants and Toddlers and Thrive from the Start to support organizations on PN3 housing and homelessness advocacy strategy. Learn more and register.

• August 6, 2-3 PM ET – Making the Most of August Recess: Engaging Members of Congress on WIC and SNAP, a webinar by Nourish from the Start inviting policymakers and advocates to engage with Members of Congress on investments in SNAP and WIC. 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 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.

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!