Indiana to expand program for expectant, new mothers with substance-use disorders

Indiana will expand its Pregnancy Promise Program to support more expectant and new mothers with substance use disorders. The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) received a three-year, up to $2.7 million federal grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), which will allow it to support an additional 300 pregnant Hoosiers over the next three years, with a focus on those living in rural and under-resourced communities.

“The program’s multigeneration approach supports pregnant women and infants from the prenatal period through 12 months postpartum,” FSSA Secretary Dr. Dan Rusyniak said. “Not only are we helping mothers find treatment and sustain recovery, but we also ensure infants have an established pediatrician, appropriate referrals to pediatric specialists as needed, and developmental support services.”

The Pregnancy Promise Program has supported more than 900 mothers since it launched in 2021. While maternal and infant mortality rates are decreasing slightly across Indiana, data from the most recent Indiana Maternal Morality Review Committee’s annual report shows substance use disorder and overdose continues to be a leading cause of maternal death in the state.

The program has resulted in high rates of sustained recovery for mothers, continuity of medications prescribed to treat opioid use disorder, prevention of preterm births, healthy infant birth weights, and access to resources to address unmet health related and social needs including stable housing, transportation, food security and child care, leading to family preservation and reunification.

The Pregnancy Promise Program partners with Indiana Medicaid managed care health plans to provide case management and care coordination services to participants who receive highly skilled support from an experienced nurse or social worker through the Medicaid health plan, ensuring pregnant individuals are receiving treatment and health care in their local community.

“We are excited about this grant, which will bolster and expand FSSA’s existing program for pregnant individuals suffering from substance-use,” Pregnancy Promise program manager Elizabeth Wahl said. “The program’s goals are clear — to save infant and maternal lives, preserve family units by securing needed resources, ensure reliable access to appropriate care and put an end to generational cycles of substance use and trauma. This program has witnessed families persevere, transform their lives and find hope for the future.”

The grant will expand services for pregnant and postpartum individuals with a primary diagnosis of a substance use disorder; remove barriers and expand outpatient treatment and recovery support services for pregnant and postpartum individuals with a substance use disorder; and promote a coordinated system of care across health care and family support providers.

The FSSA will partner with Centerstone, a community mental health center, and VOA Fresh Start, a residential treatment program, to enhance services. This funding will allow uninsured and under-insured pregnant individuals access to additional support.

Anyone can make a confidential referral to the Pregnancy Promise Program here.

The program has been funded with a five-year award from the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Innovation, which ends Dec. 31. This grant is scheduled to begin Sept. 30.