Massachusetts is moving to make an in-home nurse visit a routine part of welcoming a newborn, and the plan has quickly become a political flashpoint.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey is expanding a voluntary state program that offers families an at-home visit from a healthcare provider soon after a baby is born.
During a Boston Public Radio appearance in the week of Sept. 14, Healey said, “Everybody in the state, when you have a baby, you’re going to have a home visit within days, weeks and that will be an opportunity for a healthcare provider to make an assessment to see if you need some additional support and resources.”
The taxpayer-funded Welcome Family program is intended to connect parents with postpartum care, mental health treatment and other support. Healey’s office described the visits as voluntary and said the expansion would help providers identify concerns earlier.
“Postpartum depression, anxiety and other maternal mental health conditions are real medical conditions, and no mother should feel ashamed to ask for help or feel like she has to navigate this journey alone,” Healey said in the announcement.
The plan drew objections from Republican officials after a clip of Healey’s radio remarks spread online. Rep. Nancy Mace wrote, “IDK who needs to hear this… but the government DOES NOT OWN your baby,” while Massachusetts Republican Party chair Amy Carnevale called the program government overreach and argued that doctors already screen parents for postpartum depression and other needs.
The expansion comes as postpartum mental illness has received heightened attention in Massachusetts following Lindsay Clancy’s trial. Her defense argued that she had severe postpartum mental illness, and the jury deadlocked on charges that she killed her 3 young children.
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