S. 5515: Community Access, Resources, and Empowerment for Moms Act

This bill would take a number of steps aimed at improving maternal and infant health, especially for people at higher risk of complications or living in rural areas. It would provide federal funding for state perinatal collaboratives, which are groups that study maternal health outcomes and work to reduce preventable deaths and complications during pregnancy and after birth.

Health coverage and postpartum care

The bill would expand Medicaid and CHIP postpartum coverage so more people can keep health insurance for a longer period after giving birth. It would also add or improve dental benefits during the postpartum period, recognizing that dental care can be important during and after pregnancy.

Support services for pregnancy and after birth

The bill would support doulas and create grants for doula training. Doulas are non-medical support workers who assist pregnant and postpartum people during labor, delivery, and recovery. The bill would also expand breastfeeding and postpartum support through WIC, the federal nutrition program for women, infants, and children.

Rural and hospital-related maternal care

The bill would direct funding toward rural obstetric care, including support for rural OB/GYN services and mobile obstetric units that can bring care to communities with limited access. It would also require hospitals to give advance notice before closing obstetric units, so communities and patients have more time to prepare for changes in local maternity services.

Training, equity, and reporting

The bill would fund anti-bias training centers and require a report on maternal health needs. These measures are intended to improve how maternal health services are delivered and to identify gaps in care and outcomes across different populations and regions.

Tobacco tax changes

The bill would sharply increase and standardize federal tobacco taxes. It would also make those taxes adjust for inflation over time and apply floor-stocks taxes, which are taxes on tobacco products already held in inventory when the new tax rates take effect. This would raise the cost of tobacco products and change tax treatment across tobacco categories.

Relevant Companies

• PM — Philip Morris International could be indirectly affected by higher U.S. tobacco-related tax policy, depending on product mix and market exposure.
• BTI — British American Tobacco could be indirectly affected through its U.S. tobacco brands and any broader market effects from higher tobacco taxes.
• MO — Altria could be directly impacted by higher federal tobacco taxes because it sells tobacco products in the U.S. market.
• UVV — Universal Corporation could be affected through demand changes in the tobacco supply chain if higher taxes reduce tobacco product consumption.
• RAI — Reynolds American is privately held, but its parent company exposure to U.S. tobacco taxation could be relevant; however, no public ticker is directly tied to the company itself.