On World Maternal Mental Health Day 2026, we at MomsRising stand with all the mothers worldwide that are struggling with mental health conditions related to pregnancy and childbirth. In the United States alone 800,000 women experience perinatal mental health conditions, making these conditions the most common complication of pregnancy and birth. Instead of moms having what they need, we are forced to fight to protect the programs that keep moms and babies alive.

The numbers from a recent CDC report on pregnancy-related deaths demand our attention:

Mental health conditions are the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths, and these deaths rose 5% from 2021 to 2022.

  The postpartum window of risk for mothers is growing, and our systems are not keeping up. In 2022, there was a significant jump in mothers dying after the first 6 weeks postpartum. 

Black women are being hit hardest. Deaths among Black women due to mental health conditions nearly doubled from 2021 to 2022. This is a racial health equity emergency.

Despite this abysmal state of affairs, the hits to our health care system continue, particularly to Medicaid. Medicaid covers over 40% of U.S. births — nearly 50% in rural communities — making it the backbone of prenatal and postpartum care nationwide. And one of the most important maternal health gains has been the expansion of Medicaid coverage to 12 months postpartum. At the moment, Arkansas is the only U.S. state that has not adopted it, limiting coverage to 60 days postpartum. It is frankly, incomprehensible, that despite high maternal mortality rates Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders continues to oppose Medicaid expansion. 

It’s a hard truth to hear in the month when we celebrate mothers but, despite the ongoing rhetoric of family values, moms are squarely in the crosshairs of the assaults on our healthcare system. Maternal Mental Health Week is a reminder that the infrastructure supporting mothers in this country was hard-won and is easily lost — and right now, it is being dismantled piece by piece while we are told to be grateful for rhetoric about family values. Without pushback, these attacks will continue.

Here are some resources to get you started:

• Take action for maternal mental health! 

• Connect with Arkansas Advocates for Children & Families to help them win the battle for extended postpartum Medicaid coverage

• Share your postpartum story (or record your story here, very impactful) to let our leaders know that we won’t suffer in silence!

Get support from the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline (it’s not just for moms but for their family members too!)