Postpartum Medicaid Extension Passes in Wisconsin
- Sarah Bloomquist
- 22 hours ago
- 3 min read
In February 2026, the Wisconsin Senate Bill 23 — extending postpartum Medicaid coverage from 60 days to 12 months — finally passed the Wisconsin Assembly. After years of advocacy and watching the bill come and go, it almost felt unreal.
At MMHI, we have long supported a full year of postpartum coverage because the 60-day cutoff never reflected the lived reality of pregnancy and postpartum recovery. Wisconsin remained one of the last two states in the country to extend coverage, even after federal agencies recommended extension. Meanwhile, health professionals, advocates, and maternal health experts across the political spectrum emphasized what the data showed: risk does not end at eight weeks.
This policy has been introduced multiple times since 2019, including in Governor Tony Evers’ budget proposals. Each session brought renewed attention, testimony, and conversation — yet the bill was not brought to the Assembly floor for a vote. On February 18, 2026, the bill was sent back to committee once again. Later that evening, following continued negotiation, it returned to the floor. On February 19, it passed, marking a shift in how we value and support pregnant and postpartum people. Real change often requires persistence before it looks like progress.
Voting ‘Yes’ to Dignity
At its core, this bill is about dignity.
Pregnancy and the year after birth are physically, mentally, and emotionally intense. Complications do not neatly resolve at six or eight weeks postpartum. Some may not even show up until after that mark. Wisconsin’s Maternal Mortality Review Team reports the leading cause of pregnancy-related death is mental health — suicide and overdose. The highest risk period for these deaths is between six and nine months postpartum.
Extending coverage to 12 months acknowledges that postpartum recovery is not linear, not brief, and deserves care. It affirms that all complications, whether they’re hemorrhage, infection, or a mental health condition, deserve the same. It recognizes that healing from pregnancy and birth, and the major life changes that come with them, requires sustained care for full recovery. Extending coverage honors a person’s dignity during a time of deep vulnerability.
Celebrating a Shift
As the bill heads to Governor Evers’ desk, advocates across the state celebrate not just its passage, but the important message it sends. That pregnant and postpartum people deserve ethical treatment and equitable access to care — not because of politics, productivity, or persuasion, but because of their inherent worth.
Extending care reduces impossible choices like delaying care, rationing medication, or going without treatment altogether. It closes gaps in care that increase risk, destabilize households, and deepen disparities in maternal outcomes, particularly for Black and Indigenous mothers in Wisconsin.
Extending postpartum Medicaid allows space for moms to go through therapy, manage health issues, and stabilize. To give children the best possible start in life, care must be accessible for the person who carried, birthed, and is now sustaining them. When postpartum moms are healthy, the positive ripple effect extends to their babies, their families, and our communities.
Dignity is not earned. It is not dependent on circumstance. It is not negotiable. By extending postpartum Medicaid coverage to 12 months, Wisconsin chose to structure policy in a way that affirms that truth.
It’s not just advocates celebrating — it’s also the families who have faced barriers, stigma, or judgment around their care. We often say, “You deserve to feel well,” and now pregnant and postpartum Wisconsinites will have greater access to the care they need to do just that.
