By Amy Tolliver
For WV Perinatal Partnership
The WV Perinatal Partnership is proud to announce that West Virginia has earned a B- grade in the Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health’s 2026 Maternal Mental Health Report Card; a significant achievement that reflects the state’s ongoing commitment to improving maternal mental health care and support for families.
The report card evaluates states on policies and programs that support maternal mental health, including screening, treatment access, provider training, and insurance coverage. West Virginia’s B- grade places the state among national leaders in advancing maternal mental health initiatives and highlights the progress made through collaboration among healthcare providers, policymakers, community organizations, and advocates. This recognition is especially meaningful as maternal mental health conditions remain among the most common complications of pregnancy and childbirth.
In 2023, West Virginia received a D- on the Maternal Mental Health Report Card. That year, the Partnership received funding from the WV Bureau for Behavioral Health through a grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Maternal Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Program.
“This funding enabled us to initiate a long-overdue statewide initiative to tackle perinatal mental health conditions among our population. According to the Alliance for Innovation for Maternal Health (AIM) data, 1 in 4 women who have given birth in WV also have a perinatal mental health condition present. Since receiving the grant, we have been able to create a statewide multidisciplinary Maternal Mental Health Advisory Council (MMHAC) with five committees, sponsor over 200 full scholarships for maternal mental health trainings through Postpartum Support International (PSI), and add over 30 perinatal mental health certified providers to our state.” said Amy Tolliver, Executive Director of the WV Perinatal Partnership.
The Perinatal Partnership recently launched WV’s first Perinatal Psychiatric Access Program (WV PPAP). WV PPAP is a program designed to support frontline healthcare providers to build capacity to treat perinatal psychiatric disorders during pre-conception, pregnancy and postpartum. Through real-time consultations and telehealth services Ob/Gyns and other primary care providers have access to a perinatal psychiatrist for diagnostic and treatment guidance for their patients.
“The program provides frontline healthcare providers with rapid access to expert diagnostic and treatment guidance, which in turn helps patients receive timely, evidence-based care. By reducing the reliance on a lengthy mental health referral process and connecting patients to appropriate care more
quickly, WV PPAP ensures pregnant and postpartum individuals can access mental health care when they need it the most.” said Dr. Emily Boothe, psychiatrist and Medical Director of the WV PPAP.
The report card underscores the importance of continuing efforts to strengthen maternal mental health services, expand access to care, and address barriers that families may face. Through ongoing education, advocacy, and collaboration, the Perinatal Partnership aims to build on this momentum and further improve outcomes for mothers, infants, and families across West Virginia.
For more information about the Perinatal Partnership and its programs, visit www.wvperinatal.org or contact Amy Tolliver at [email protected], and to see the report card, click here: https://policycentermmh.org/state-report-cards/
This project is made possible through a federal grant from the US Health Resources and Services Administration to the WV Department of Human Services; the West Virginia Perinatal Partnership is a subrecipient of the federal funding in the amount of $779,121 and 100% of this activity is supported through federal funds.
