Massachusetts Governor proposes expanded postpartum mental health support

Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has announced a series of measures to strengthen maternal mental health and postpartum care. The proposal includes a request for $2 million in a supplemental budget to expand the Welcome Family program, which provides free home visits by specialized nurses to families with newborns. Currently serving approximately 3,000 families annually, the expansion aims to reach the state’s roughly 68,000 annual births.

Additionally, Healey proposed $250,000 for the Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Program for Moms and called for updated state regulations to improve the screening of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. These initiatives follow the high-profile mistrial in the case of Lindsay Clancy, whose defense argued she was suffering from postpartum psychosis during a 2023 incident involving her children.

Governor Healey emphasized the need for open discussion regarding postpartum challenges, stating that the goal is to identify mental health concerns earlier and connect families with necessary support services.