Big Win! Oregon Passes Momnibus — and PNFF Updates

We have fantastic news to share: Oregon’s Momnibus bill officially passed and was signed into law by Governor Tina Kotek on July 17, 2025!

Some pieces were trimmed in the legislative process, but here’s what made it through that’s a huge win for doulas, lactation providers, and families:

• Commercial insurance must now cover birth doulas (until now, only Medicaid did).

• An additional 24 hours of postpartum doula care was added to the standard birth doula package for both Medicaid and commercial insurance, which includes two prenatal visits, birth support, and two postpartum visits. Families can also use four extra visits pre- or postnatally.

• Lactation support coverage was included in the final bill.

This victory happened because Oregon’s community showed up in force - parents, doulas, lactation consultants, perinatal providers, and advocates all sent letters, emails, and made phone calls. Your work mattered, and it worked. This will help families here and could influence legislation in other states, too. These extra services will take a couple years to impact parents - trainings, rules and processes need to be ironed out by the Oregon Health Authority, but we are so happy we're moving in the right direction!

What’s new at PNFF:

This year, we’ve been hard at work behind the scenes:

• Building PNFF into a Medicaid billing hub for doula services.

• Supporting dozens of families before and after birth with doula services, lactation services, resource navigation and education.

• Running the day-to-day operations to keep everything moving (there's SO much to do to run a non-profit!).

• Creating safe spaces for doulas who need emotional support after difficult client situations.

• Making sure every family we serve feels heard, supported, and respected.

• Continuing the advocacy, outreach, and engagement work to keep postpartum care on the policy agenda.

Today, PNFF can now fund postpartum doula care in three ways:

• Billing Medicaid directly

• Applying for flex funds from Medicaid

• Using private PNFF funds from generous donors and foundations

PNFF at the PSI Conference:

We also had the opportunity to attend the Postpartum Support International (PSI) conference a couple weeks ago, where we presented a poster on our study with OHSU’s NICU exploring postpartum doula support after NICU stays. We had some fascinating conversations, made valuable connections with other organizations, and learned even more about supporting parents struggling with mental health challenges during pregnancy and postpartum.

We’ve already begun enrolling clients in the study and can’t wait to share more once we’ve gathered some initial data (though we fully believe a parent who has a postpartum doula - has showered, eaten, napped - will feel better… obviously).

From left to right: Joanna Wilder, NP, CNM, Kestrel Gates of Build Your Nest, Liz Farmer, PNFF Director

Oregon Parenting Education Collective (OPEC) Grant:

Thanks to the OPEC grant we received at the beginning of the year, we launched the Build Your Nest Navigator program and proudly certified 11 Latinx doulas as postpartum navigators - powerful community leaders now guiding parents through one of the most vulnerable times in their lives. We’re hosting workshops and offering one-on-one navigation so no parent has to face postpartum recovery feeling lost or alone.

Postpartum navigation connects families to resources, care, and support they might never have known existed - helping parents feel seen, held, and better able to heal and bond with their babies.

We know there are challenges ahead. Like many billing hubs, organizations, clinics, and hospitals, we’re already seeing Medicaid claim denials and funding cuts - but we’re committed to fighting through them so families get the care they deserve.