Senate File 2252 - Enrolled
Senate File 2252
AN ACT
RELATING TO THE MORE OPTIONS FOR MATERNAL SUPPORT PROGRAM,
AND INCLUDING EFFECTIVE DATE AND RETROACTIVE APPLICABILITY
PROVISIONS.
4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
1 Section 1. Section 217.41C, Code 2024, is amended to read
2 as follows:
3 217.41C More options for maternal support program.
4 1. a. The department shall create the more options for
5 maternal support program, a statewide program to promote
6 healthy pregnancies and childbirth through nonprofit
7 organizations that provide pregnancy support services.
8 b. The more options for maternal support program is designed
9 to do all of the following:
10 (1) Provide an approach and personalized support to
11 pregnant women to provide stabilization to families.
12 (2) Promote improved pregnancy outcomes, including reducing
13 abortions, by helping women practice sound health-related
14 behaviors and improve prenatal nutrition.
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15 (3) Improve child health and development by helping parents
16 provide responsible and competent care for their children.
17 (4) Improve family economic self-sufficiency by linking
18 parents to services that address individual economic and social
19 needs.
20 c. For the purposes of this section, “pregnancy support
21 services”:
22 (1) “Pregnancy support services” means those nonmedical
23 services that promote childbirth by providing information,
24 counseling, and support services that assist pregnant women or
25 women who believe they may be pregnant to choose childbirth and
26 to make informed decisions regarding the choice of adoption or
27 parenting with respect to their children.
28 (2) “Provider of pregnancy support services” or “provider”
29 means a nonprofit organization that provides pregnancy support
30 services under contract with the program administrator or the
31 department.
32 2. The program may provide and support all of the following
33 pregnancy support services:
34 a. Nutritional services and education.
35 b. Housing, education, and employment assistance during
1 pregnancy and up to one year following a birth.
2 c. Adoption education, planning, and services.
3 d. Child care assistance if necessary for a pregnant woman
4 to receive pregnancy support services.
5 e. Parenting education and support services for up to one
6 year following a child’s birth.
7 f. Material items which are supportive of pregnancy and
8 childbirth including but not limited to cribs, car seats,
9 clothing, diapers, formula, or other safety devices.
10 g. Information regarding health care benefits, including but
11 not limited to available Medicaid coverage for pregnancy care
12 and health care coverage for a child following birth.
13 h. A call center for information or to schedule
14 appointments.
15 i. Medical information and referrals for medical care,
16 including but not limited to pregnancy tests, sexually
17 transmitted infection tests, other health screenings,
18 ultrasound services, prenatal care, and birth classes and
 Senate File 2252, p. 3
19 planning.
20 j. Counseling, mentoring, educational information, and
21 classes relating to pregnancy, parenting, adoption, life
22 skills, and employment readiness.
23 3. The department shall may administer the program directly
24 through providers of pregnancy support services or may issue a
25 request for proposals to select a program administrator for the
26 program. A If the department issues a request for proposals
27 and selects a program administrator, the program administrator
28 shall meet all of the following requirements:
29 a. Be a nonprofit entity incorporated in this state with a
30 tax-exempt status pursuant to section 501(c)(3) of the Internal
31 Revenue Code.
32 b. Have Create and maintain, and have systems and processes
33 in place that have been used for at least three years to
34 successfully manage, a statewide network of subcontractors
35 providing providers of pregnancy support services.
1 c. Have a commitment to promoting healthy pregnancies and
2 childbirth instead of abortion as a fundamental part of the
3 program administrator’s mission.
4 d. Create and maintain a network of subcontractors to
5 provide pregnancy support services.
6 e. d. Maintain records for each subcontractor provider of
7 pregnancy support services.
8 f. e. Monitor compliance with the terms and conditions of
9 a subcontractor contract with a provider of pregnancy support
10 services.
11 4. A subcontractor providing provider of pregnancy support
12 services under the program shall meet all of the following
13 requirements:
14 a. Be a nonprofit organization incorporated in this state
15 with a tax-exempt status pursuant to section 501(c)(3) of the
16 Internal Revenue Code.
17 b. Have a minimum of one year of operational experience in
18 either providing core pregnancy support services or managing
19 a network of providers of pregnancy support services as a
20 subcontractor.
21 c. Have a primary mission of promoting healthy pregnancies
22 and childbirth instead of abortion.
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23 d. Have a system of financial accountability consistent with
24 generally accepted accounting principles, including an annual
25 budget.
26 e. Have a board that hires and supervises a director who
27 manages the organization’s operations.
28 f. Offer, at a minimum, counseling or services for women who
29 are or may be experiencing unplanned pregnancies.
30 g. Provide confidential and free pregnancy support services
31 and other program services.
32 h. Provide each pregnant woman with accurate information
33 on the developmental characteristics of unborn children and
34 babies.
35 i. Ensure that program funds are not used to provide
1 or refer pregnant women for terminations of pregnancy, or
2 to encourage or affirmatively counsel a pregnant woman to
3 terminate a pregnancy unless the pregnant woman’s attending
4 physician confirms the termination of pregnancy is medically
5 necessary to prevent the pregnant woman’s death.
6 j. Maintain confidentiality of all data, files, and records
7 related to the program pregnancy support services provided
8 to persons accessing program the pregnancy support services
9 through the program in compliance with state and federal laws.
10 5. The department shall publish the program administrator
11 and subcontractor criteria on the department’s internet site.
12 6. 5. The department shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter
13 17A to administer the program, and. If the department selects
14 a program administrator through a request for proposals
15 process, the department shall provide technical assistance to
16 the program administrator, monitor the program administrator
17 for adherence to state and federal requirements, and collect
18 and maintain program data.
19 7. 6. Beginning October 1, 2023 2024, and on or before
20 October 1 annually thereafter, the department shall submit to
21 the general assembly the following program information relative
22 to the prior fiscal year:
23 a. The total number of subcontractors providers of pregnancy
24 support services by geographical region and the total number
25 of unduplicated clients served by each subcontractor provider
26 by gender and age.
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27 b. A description of outreach efforts by the an
28 administrator, subcontractors providers of pregnancy support
29 services, and the department.
30 c. Total program expenditures.
31 d. The amounts attributable to the any program administrator
32 contract and to each contract with the subcontractors a
33 provider of pregnancy support services.
34 e. The outcomes based on outcome measures included in
35 the contracts with the any program administrator and each
1 subcontractor provider of pregnancy support services.
2 Sec. 2. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act, being deemed of immediate
3 importance, takes effect upon enactment.
4 Sec. 3. RETROACTIVE APPLICABILITY. This Act applies
5 retroactively to July 1, 2022.
______________________________ ______________________________
AMY SINCLAIR PAT GRASSLEY
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that this bill originated in the Senate and
is known as Senate File 2252, Ninetieth General Assembly.
______________________________
W. CHARLES SMITHSON
Secretary of the Senate
Approved _______________, 2024 ______________________________
KIM REYNOLDS
Governor


Statutes affected:
Introduced: 217.41C
Enrolled: 217.41C