Photo: Getty Images
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has signed a new law, S912/A3887, aimed at ensuring all pregnant individuals in the state receive personalized postpartum care. The law, signed on Thursday (November 18), requires health care professionals to offer pregnant patients a postpartum planning session as early as the first trimester of pregnancy. It also mandates that health care facilities providing maternity care services provide postpartum care information to all patients receiving maternity care services prior to being discharged at the end of a pregnancy, including for patients who have experienced a stillbirth or pregnancy loss.
The New Jersey Maternal Mortality Review Committee has found that most pregnancy-related deaths occur in the postpartum period. This law aims to address preventable factors like care continuity and patient knowledge about risk indicators.
According to the official press release, Governor Murphy stated, “New Jersey has made significant progress over the last seven years in our work to reduce maternal and infant mortality, and our efforts have shown how increased care continuity and access to information can improve outcomes for families across our state.”
The law is part of the Nurture NJ initiative, a statewide program launched by First Lady Tammy Murphy to make New Jersey the safest, most equitable state in the nation to deliver and raise a baby. Since the inception of Nurture NJ in 2019, over 65 pieces of maternal and infant health legislation have been signed into law by Governor Murphy.