When Walmart announced its Doula Assistance Benefit in October, it became the nation’s largest employer offering a doula assistance benefit. The retailer is the largest employer in the United States, with more than 2 million employees, 23,231 of whom work in Washington. (In contrast, CVS employs 300,000 people nationwide, making it closer in size to Microsoft, which employs just over 220,000 people.)
Before launching the national benefit, Walmart offered it on a trial basis to employees in Georgia, Louisiana, and Illinois. Health plans that provide access to doulas are currently available to most retail employees, except for Hawaii employees. Walmart will pay up to $1,000 for doula services during pregnancy. Lisa Woods, Walmart’s vice president of physical and mental health, said on the company’s website that the company hopes to help employees who live in areas where access to maternity care is lacking or non-existent. said. “Doulas are especially important in medical deserts where access to care is limited,” she says. These deserts could grow further as states such as Idaho close maternity care facilities in the aftermath of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health.
Access to Medicaid in Washington
Washington birth advocates are also working to ensure low-income Washington residents have access to doulas. The Doulas for All Coalition, led by queer, trans, Black, Indigenous, and people of color birth justice advocates, calls for Medicaid reimbursement for doulas and measures to expand access to more than half of births. I am teaching. state. Over the summer, a coalition including Open Arms began working with state departments of health to create a credentialing pathway for birth doulas that would be the first step toward reimbursement under Medicaid. The coalition government plans to lobby for additional legislation this winter, including a budget review. If passed, registration could begin by the summer.
But even with future Medicaid reimbursement and some corporate plans to expand access to doula assistance, a wide swath of Washingtonians will still have to pay out-of-pocket. And in other states that don’t have strong resources for doulas, many do the work for free. “A lot of people in between are trying to figure this out,” Jones said.
