Nebraska is the most recent Republican state to increase Medicaid to cowl postpartum look after low-income moms

LINCOLN, NEBRASKA — Low-income new moms will get Medicaid well being care protection for a full yr in Nebraska beneath an order issued Wednesday by Republican Gov. Jim Palin.

The transfer makes Nebraska the most recent in a rising listing of Republican-led states which have beforehand refused to increase postpartum Medicaid protection past the 60-day minimal after a lady provides start. Now conservatives are embracing the change largely as a part of an anti-abortion agenda within the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court docket’s ruling final yr overturning Roe v. Wade, which for 50 years assured the constitutional proper to an abortion.

Since that ruling, the Nebraska Legislature has enacted a 12-week abortion ban, and Palin has promised to push for a six-week ban subsequent yr.

State lawmakers handed a invoice earlier this yr to increase postpartum Medicaid protection to not less than six months. Belin stated his order for the complete yr’s protection is “an necessary step in supporting moms and kids in Nebraska.” Different states that expanded protection this yr with strict abortion bans embrace Mississippi and Missouri.

“This choice ensures that just about 5,000 moms throughout our state will keep entry to a complete array of behavioral and bodily well being providers,” Belin stated. “Our youngsters are the way forward for this state, and we’re dedicated to offering the strongest assist system potential to assist them succeed.”