Mae, Molina Healthcare of Virginia partner to support Black expectant mothers

Mae Health, a digital health platform that offers pregnancy and postpartum support for Black expectant mothers, announced that it is partnering with government-funded healthcare provider Molina Healthcare of Virginia to deliver Mae’s offerings to Molina members at no cost. 

Mae offers a pregnancy tracker, real-time support services, pregnancy education, personalized lifestyle and care tips, and access to culturally competent experts like doulas, lactation consultants and pregnancy coaches.

Molina’s members, comprising Medicare and health insurance marketplace members in Virginia, will have access to virtual and community-based doulas through Mae’s platform. The doulas will provide emotional support and advocacy, birth education and lactation support. 

“We are thrilled to partner with Molina as they provide enhanced perinatal resources to their members across Virginia,” Alisha Lalani, head of growth at Mae, said in a statement. “This partnership will allow us to address disparities in maternal health outcomes and the specific clinical and social needs of mothers in a culturally congruent way.”

THE LARGER TREND

In 2021, the maternal mortality rate for non-Hispanic Black women was 69.9 deaths per 100,000 live births, 2.6 times higher than that for non-Hispanic White women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Mae launched in 2021 with $1.3 million in pre-seed funding, which the company said would go toward its long-term goal of becoming a value-based, supplemental care option for pregnant Black women.

This past April, the company announced a partnership with Aetna Better Health of Maryland, a CVS Health company, to collaborate on a pilot program to reduce health disparities for Black expectant mothers by providing culturally competent doula support through Mae’s platform.

Other companies seeking to improve maternal health include tech-enabled maternity clinic Millie, digital health family care platform Ovia Health and maternal health startup Cayaba Care.