A Missouri Senate bill would require maternity health insurance plans to cover home blood‑pressure monitors.
The sponsor, Sen. Maggie Nurrenbern, D-Clay County, said it’s needed because heart‑related conditions are now a leading cause of pregnancy complications.
“When used throughout pregnancy and the postpartum period, home blood pressure monitoring allows for early detection of dangerously elevated blood pressures before it leads to a serious complication such as stroke, emergency deliveries, or in severe cases, preterm birth or loss of life,” said Nurrenbern.
Dr. Jessica Norton, with Affinia Healthcare in St. Louis, said Medicaid patients are already covered with these monitors during pregnancy, and it should be expanded to all patients.
“But we continue to face significant challenges with coverage, reimbursement, especially for our privately insured patients,” said Norton. “So, two patients with the same risk factors receiving care at the same clinic but can face very different access because of their insurance is unacceptable.”
Shannon Cooper, who lobbies for America’s Health Insurance Plans, had a warning.
“It always concerns us, and this won’t be the first time I’m up here this afternoon to oppose a bill,” said Cooper. “As we provide more, as we put more and more mandates on the private market, more employers make that decision to step away from a state-regulated plan.”
SB 1089 received a hearing this week in the Senate Insurance and Banking Committee, where it now awaits further action.
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