In The News
Non Profit Shout Out with Organizing4good
We sat down with Ryan Lanier of Organizing4Good to talk about what we’re up to at Circle Up, the goings on of the 87th Legislative Session and how you can get involved.
66 TX GROUPS URGE LEGISLATURE TO PASS MATERNAL HEALTH COVERAGE BILL
Circle Up was proud to join 66 Texas organizations to call on legislative leaders to pass House Bill 133 by Rep. Toni Rose to allow mothers to remain enrolled in Medicaid insurance for 12 months after pregnancy rather than losing their insurance after just two months. HB 133 — one of the high-profile bills in the Healthy Families package outlined by House Speaker Dade Phelan — passed the Texas House but has not been scheduled for a Senate hearing yet.
Read the full statement
Pregnant during a pandemic — why advocacy groups are worried about maternal health
The COVID-19 Pandemic has impacted almost every aspect our lives, including pregnancy and birth. KXAN interviewed Circle Up member Haley Rose to discuss both her experience being pregnant during this global health crisis and what advocacy organizations like Circle Up are trying to do to ensure moms are taken care of.
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Circle Up Calls for the Passage of the Helping MOMS Act
We’ve joined with 44 other organizations in Texas to stand in support of the Helping MOMS Act, a bi-partisan effort which would incentivize states to extend Medicaid for new moms. This important step would allow a majority of women giving birth in Texas (52% of births in this state are covered by Medicaid) to receive life-saving, continuous healthcare for a full year after delivery instead of the current expiration of coverage at 60 days after birth.
Read The Letter Here
Maternal Mortality Rates Still High in Texas
Darcy Hamre, one of our Outreach Coordinators, spoke with Reform Austin about ongoing racial disparities in maternal health. Currently, black women are 3-4 times more likely to experience a pregnancy related death or near-death (morbidity) than their white peers.
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Reform Austin Spotlight Series
We sat down with Jessica Oswald, reporter for the non-profit journalism organization, Reform Austin, to discuss Maternal Mortality and the Texas Legislature.
Read the recap here
response, United Methodist Women’s Magazine
While our focus at Circle Up is on maternal health, we are also always looking for way to empower other faith-based groups to get involved in advocacy work. Check out our feature in response Magazine, an award-winning publication and the official magazine of United Methodist Women, to learn more about how our organization was created and continues to grow.
Read more here
Circle Up’s Response to UMW’s General Conference 2019 Statement
The members of Circle Up are not in alignment with the decisions made at the United Methodist General Conference. We believe the “Traditional Plan” to be detrimental to the church as it embodies and promotes open discrimination and hatred towards our LGBTQ brothers and sisters.
Read our response
CBS Coverage of the 2019 Brunch & Learn About Maternal Health
Circle Up hosted a Brunch & Learn About Maternal Health which featured a panel of experts from Black Mamas, Community Collective, Texas Women’s Healthcare Coalition and Texans Care for Children. CBS Austin was there and covered our efforts to raise awareness about the racial disparities in maternal health and what was being done to improve health outcomes for women and infants in Texas.