Requires DOH to establish maternity care evaluation protocols.

S3795

SENATE, No. 3795

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED MARCH 5, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� M. TERESA RUIZ

District 29 (Essex and Hudson)

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires DOH to establish maternity care evaluation
protocols.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act

concerning maternity care evaluation and
supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� a.�� The Commissioner of
Health shall develop and prescribe by regulation comprehensive policies and
procedures to be followed by every hospital that provides inpatient maternity
services, and every birthing center which is licensed in the State pursuant to
P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.), for the collection and dissemination of
data on maternity care.

���� b.��� The Department of Health
shall establish a maternity care evaluation protocol that every hospital
providing inpatient maternity services, and every birthing center licensed in
the State pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.), shall follow in
order to collect hospital discharge data relevant to maternity care.

���� The de-identified hospital
discharge data collected pursuant to the maternity care evaluation protocol
shall include, but not be limited to:

���� (1)�� the race and age of the
mother, maternal and paternal family history, comorbidities, prenatal care
history, antepartum findings, history of maternal pregnancy complications, and
history of past obstetric complications;

���� (2)�� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who were treated for hypertensive disorders,
including preeclampsia and associated conditions, during the reporting period;

���� (3)�� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who experienced an obstetric hemorrhage accompanied
by an adverse event, as defined by the guidelines established by the American
College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, during the reporting period;

���� (4)�� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who underwent non-medically indicated labor
induction procedures, and the number and percentage of maternal patients who
delivered after 37 weeks gestation but before 39 weeks gestation, and who
underwent medically indicated induction procedures;

���� (5)�� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who underwent non-medically indicated cesarean
section procedures, and the number and percentage of maternal patients who
underwent medically indicated cesarean section procedures;

���� (6)�� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who underwent vaginal deliveries;

���� (7)�� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who delivered at 41 or more weeks of gestation;

���� (8)�� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who delivered at 39 or more weeks of gestation;

���� (9)�� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who delivered after 37 weeks of gestation, but
before 39 weeks of gestation;

���� (10)��� the number and
percentage of maternal patients who delivered after 34 weeks of gestation, but
before 37 weeks of gestation;

���� (11)��� the number and
percentage of infants born with birth defects, broken down by the specific
birth defect;

���� (12)��� the number and
percentage of infants born weighing five pounds, eight ounces or more;

���� (13)��� the number and
percentage of infants born weighing less than five pounds, eight ounces;

���� (14)��� the number and
percentage of late and term stillbirths as defined by the federal Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention; and

���� (15) any other information
related to a maternal patient�s prenatal, postnatal, labor, and delivery care
that is deemed necessary.

���� 2.��� The Department of Health
shall evaluate the data collected under the maternity care evaluation protocol
for the purposes of:

���� (1)�� facilitating a
data-based review of the provision of maternity care services in the State, in
order to identify potential improvements in the provision of such services;

���� (2)�� generating Statewide
perinatal and provider-level quality metrics;

���� (3)�� establishing Statewide
and regional objective benchmarks that promote improvements in maternal health
outcomes and the quality of maternity care, and comparing the performance of
every hospital that provides inpatient maternity services and every birthing
center which is licensed in the State pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et
seq) to such benchmarks;

���� (4)�� identifying data quality
issues that may directly impact the performance of hospitals and birthing
centers in providing maternity care services;

���� (5)�� encouraging hospitals
and birthing centers that provide inpatient maternity services to participate
in quality improvement collaboratives; and

���� (6)�� researching the
association between clinical practices, the quality of maternal care, and
maternal health care outcomes.

���� 3.��� No later than one year
after the effective date of this act, and annually thereafter, the Commissioner
of Health shall report to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to
section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), on the findings of the evaluation
required pursuant to section 2 of this act, and shall include in the report any
recommendations for legislative action that the commissioner deems appropriate.

���� 4.��� The Commissioner of
Health, pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act,� P.L.1968, c.410
(C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall adopt such rules and regulations as the
commissioner determines necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act.

���� 5.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires the
Commissioner of Health (commissioner) to develop comprehensive policies and
procedures to be followed by every hospital providing inpatient maternity
services, and every birthing center licensed in the State pursuant to P.L.1971,
c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.), in the State, for the collection and dissemination
of data on maternity care.

���� The bill would require the
Department of Health (DOH) to establish a maternity care evaluation protocol
that every hospital and every birthing center would be required to follow in
order to collect hospital discharge data relevant to maternity care, including,
but not limited to de-identified information outlined under the bill.�

���� The Department of Health is to
evaluate the data collected under the maternity care evaluation protocol for
the purposes of: facilitating a data-based review of the provision of maternity
care services in the State in order to identify potential improvements in the
provisions of such services; generating Statewide perinatal and provider-level
quality metrics; establishing Statewide and regional objective benchmarks that
promote improvements in maternal health outcomes and the quality of maternity
care, and comparing the performance every hospital and birthing center in the
State to such benchmarks; identifying data quality issues that may directly
impact the performance of hospitals and birthing centers in providing maternity
care services; encouraging hospitals and birthing centers that provide
inpatient maternity services to participate in quality improvement
collaboratives; and researching the association between clinical practices, the
quality of maternal care, and maternal health care outcomes.

���� No later than one year after
the enactment of the bill, and every year after, the commissioner would report
to the Governor and the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164
(C.52:14-19.1), on the findings of the evaluation required pursuant to the
bill.� The report would include any recommendations for legislative action that
the commissioner deems appropriate.