How can we address the challenges of opioid use in pregnancy?

Challenge

Opioid use in pregnancy is associated with high numbers of babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome or neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services awarded cooperative agreements to 10 state Medicaid agencies to implement the Maternal Opioid Misuse (MOM) Model. By supporting the coordination of clinical care and the integration of other critical services, the MOM Model has the potential to improve quality of care and reduce costs for mothers and infants.

Solution

Westat developed qualitative, process, and impact evaluation designs to conduct 10 individual model awardee evaluations and a cross-site evaluation. The MOM evaluation is based on a mixed-methods framework and includes numerous rounds of key informant interviews, patient focus groups, patient interviews, and qualitative data analysis using Dedoose.

Analysis of participant-level process data will provide characteristics of MOM enrollees, their experiences and service use, and ongoing examination of the outcomes associated with program participation. The implementation period will include impact analyses, making use of T-MSIS (Medicaid) data, vital statistics, and other awardee-specific or publicly available data to measure the model’s effects on quality, health outcomes, and costs.

For this 5-year evaluation, Westat is using innovative approaches such as a mixed-methods integration team, Photovoice, and journey mapping for capturing patient perspectives.

Results

The mixed-methods evaluation will determine the impact of the MOM Model on health outcomes, patient experiences, utilization, and cost for pregnant and postpartum Medicaid patients with opioid use disorder and their infants.

Learn more:

CMS website: Maternal Opioid Misuse (MOM) Model

Latest Annual Report:

Two Pager: Maternal Opioid Misuse (MOM) Model Evaluation of Implementation Year 2 (July 2022−June 2023) (PDF)

Full report: Evaluation of the Maternal Opioid Misuse (MOM) Model Third Annual Report (Implementation Year 2) (PDF)

Prior Evaluation Reports

Two Pager: At-A-Glance Report (PDF)

MOM Model Second Annual Evaluation Report (PDF)

Two Pager: At-A-Glance Report (PDF)

MOM Model Pre-Implementation Evaluation Report (PDF)