On May 6, 2022, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approved state plan amendments submitted by Tennessee and South Carolina through which those states will now provide 12 months of continuous postpartum Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage. Section 9822 of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021 added section 2107(e)(1)(J) to the Social Security Act, which requires states to provide continuous eligibility throughout an individual’s pregnancy and 12-month postpartum period in CHIP if the state has elected this option in Medicaid.

To date, Louisiana, Michigan, Virginia, New Jersey, and Illinois, in addition to Tennessee and South Carolina, have worked with CMS to extend Medicaid and CHIP coverage to 12 months postpartum pursuant to Section 9822 of the ARP. Nine other states and the District of Columbia are also in the process of extending postpartum coverage to 12 months, which may result in as many as 720,000 pregnant and postpartum individuals receiving guaranteed Medicaid and CHIP coverage. This is part of a national effort to address pregnancy-related mortality and morbidity.

The expansion is addressed on CMS’s website here.