Prenatal and Postpartum Care (PPC)

The percentage of deliveries of live births on or between October 8 of the year prior to the measurement period and October 7 of the measurement period. For these persons, the measure assesses the following facets of prenatal and postpartum care: 

• Timeliness of Prenatal Care. The percentage of deliveries that received a prenatal care visit in the first trimester on or before the enrollment start date or within 42 days of enrollment in the organization. 

• Postpartum Care. The percentage of deliveries that had a postpartum visit on or between 7 and 84 days after delivery. 

Why It Matters

This measure assesses whether timely prenatal or postpartum visits occurred during pregnancy and after delivery. The intent of the measure is to assess whether prenatal and postpartum care was rendered on a routine, outpatient basis rather than assessing treatment for emergent events.  

Preventive medicine is fundamental to prenatal care. Ensuring early initiation of prenatal care is an important component of programs that aim to improve maternal and infant health outcomes. Inadequate prenatal care raises the risk of adverse birth outcomes, potentially because the health care provider has fewer opportunities to identify and manage conditions that can have a negative impact.  

Lack of prenatal care is often considered a high-risk factor for neonatal complications and post neonatal death. The goal of the prenatal contact is to exchange information and identify existing risk factors that may impact the pregnancy. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), prenatal care can minimize the risk of pregnancy complications and negative birth outcomes ⁽¹⁾. Similarly, comprehensive postpartum care is critical for setting the stage for the long-term health and well-being of new mothers and their infants ⁽²⁾. Common issues after birth include lack of sleep, fatigue, pain, stress, breastfeeding difficulties, mental health disorders and pre-existing health and social concerns ⁽²⁾. In addition, more than half of maternal deaths occur after birth ⁽³⁾.  

Joint guidelines published by ACOG and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommend a prenatal visit in the first trimester of pregnancy ⁽⁴⁾. In May 2018, ACOG published a committee opinion recommending that all women have an initial assessment with a maternal care provider within 21 days after birth to address acute postpartum issues. The initial assessment should then be followed by ongoing care as needed and conclude with a comprehensive visit within 12 weeks after birth ⁽²⁾. The Department of Defense, Veteran’s Administration (DoD/VA) clinical practice guidelines recommend a postpartum visit within 6 weeks, and no later than 8 weeks, after delivery ⁽⁵⁾.  

Historical Results – National Averages