Did you know that nearly two out of every three women enrolled in Medicaid are in their reproductive years (ages 19-44), and Medicaid currently finances about 40% of all births in the United States? The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) can play a major role in improving the quality of maternity care, birth outcomes, and in measuring how care is delivered to pregnant and post-partum women.

Neonatal Outcomes Improvement Project (NOIP)

In 2005, CMS convened a group of nationally-recognized experts in quality improvement, pediatrics, neonatology and obstetrics, as well as state Medicaid medical directors, to identify evidence-based clinical practices that improve care of high-risk newborns.  The Neonatal Outcomes Improvement Project (NOIP), based on ten clinical interventions, was conceived as a multi-state, public-private partnership of a broad base of stakeholders using a Quality Collaborative model for breakthrough improvement—including elements such as evidence reviews, data analysis, feedback, and peer accountability. 

In conjunction with CMS, the National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality (NICHQ) developed a draft “change package” that established protocols for care management of premature babies.  The change package consists of 10 interventions consisting of antenatal and postnatal practices to reduce maternal and neonatal risks.  The NOIP interventions are focused on the following areas: maternal risk reduction, antenatal practices, immediate postnatal practices, and neonatal intensive care practices.  

Three states received medicaid transformation grants for NOIP intervention implementation.