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Disruptive Women in Health Care
JK

Disruptive Women in Health Care

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A platform for women disrupting the status quo in health — and each other.

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Good evening, Jordan.

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Pinned · From your network
Maternal Health

The racial disparity in maternal mortality isn't a fluke of biology. It's a systemic failure that new CDC data makes undeniable — Black women die in childbirth at 2.6× the rate of white women, controlled for income. The gap widens with education. This is racism in medicine.

Reproductive Health

We keep debating access as if it's purely a policy question. But if the nearest provider is 90 miles away, access isn't a political choice — it's a geographic sentence. Contraception policy debates are missing the logistics entirely.

Mental Health

Postpartum depression affects 1 in 5 new mothers, but only 15% are screened in primary care. We know the Edinburgh Scale works. We know early intervention reduces hospitalization. What we lack is the will to make it standard practice.

New post

Voice · Public

JK
Jordan Koenig
MD, MPH · OB-GYN · Georgetown University Medical Center
Your name, credentials, and affiliation publish with every post. Verified on profile.

Post

NK
Dr. Nadia Kim
MD, MPH · OB-GYN
Johns Hopkins Medicine · Verified
Maternal Health 2 hours ago

The racial disparity in maternal mortality isn't a fluke of biology. It's a systemic failure that new CDC data makes undeniable — Black women die in childbirth at 2.6× the rate of white women, controlled for income. The gap widens with education. This is racism in medicine.

Better trained providers, better listening, better protocols. The evidence exists. The question is whether institutions will mandate them.

Linked evidence — 2 sources
Racial Disparities in Maternal Mortality — United States, 2019–2021
Black women: 69.9 deaths per 100,000 live births. White women: 26.6. Disparity holds across all income quartiles.
↗ CDC MMWR · May 2025
Implicit Bias in Obstetric Care and Maternal Outcomes
Clinician-level racial bias in pain assessment correlates with delayed intervention in Black patients presenting with preeclampsia.
↗ Obstetrics & Gynecology · March 2025

34 replies

TR
Dr. Tanya Robinson
MD · Internal Medicine · UCSF
I've been in rooms where this disparity was explained away by "patient compliance." The data you've linked ends that conversation. Thank you for citing it directly.
ML
Monica Lee
MPH · Maternal Health Advocate
Sharing this to the DC Convening group. We're discussing exactly this on Thursday — would love if you could join.
Your feed Personalized

Good evening, Jordan.

Built from your focus areas
Maternal Health Reproductive Health Health Equity Your network · 12 active
Surfaced for you — Maternal Health
Your focus area · Maternal Health
Maternal Health

The racial disparity in maternal mortality isn't a fluke of biology. It's a systemic failure that new CDC data makes undeniable — Black women die in childbirth at 2.6× the rate of white women, controlled for income. The gap widens with education. This is racism in medicine.

Connected in Move
200 Letters for Doula Certification Parity
127 of 200 submitted · Add yours →
In your network · Dr. Simone Walker saved this
Maternal Health

The Medicaid rollback isn't a budget question. For 40% of births in this country, it's a survival question. We fought for this coverage. We can fight for it again — but not if we treat it as inevitable.

From your network — Reproductive Health
Saved by 3 in your network
Reproductive Health

We keep debating access as if it's purely a policy question. But if the nearest provider is 90 miles away, access isn't a political choice — it's a geographic sentence. Contraception policy debates are missing the logistics entirely.

Your focus area · Health Equity
Mental Health

Postpartum depression affects 1 in 5 new mothers, but only 15% are screened in primary care. We know the Edinburgh Scale works. We know early intervention reduces hospitalization. What we lack is the will to make it standard practice.

Post

NK
Dr. Nadia Kim
MD, MPH · OB-GYN
Johns Hopkins Medicine · Verified
Maternal Health 2 hours ago

The racial disparity in maternal mortality isn't a fluke of biology. It's a systemic failure that new CDC data makes undeniable — Black women die in childbirth at 2.6× the rate of white women, controlled for income. The gap widens with education. This is racism in medicine.

Better trained providers, better listening, better protocols. The evidence exists. The question is whether institutions will mandate them.

Linked evidence — 2 sources
Racial Disparities in Maternal Mortality — United States, 2019–2021
Black women: 69.9 deaths per 100,000 live births. White women: 26.6. Disparity holds across all income quartiles.
↗ CDC MMWR · May 2025
Implicit Bias in Obstetric Care and Maternal Outcomes
Clinician-level racial bias in pain assessment correlates with delayed intervention in Black patients presenting with preeclampsia.
↗ Obstetrics & Gynecology · March 2025

34 replies

TR
Dr. Tanya Robinson
MD · Internal Medicine · UCSF
I've been in rooms where this disparity was explained away by "patient compliance." The data you've linked ends that conversation. Thank you for citing it directly.
ML
Monica Lee
MPH · Maternal Health Advocate
Sharing this to the DC Convening group. We're discussing exactly this on Thursday — would love if you could join.
In your feed because — Maternal Health
More from this topic, your network, and active campaigns
DW on this topic
Ward 8 and the Closing of DC's Safety Net
The 2019 closure of United Medical Center left 77,000 Ward 8 residents without a hospital. This Disruptive Women analysis tracks what followed — and what didn't.
↗ Disruptive Women · Health Equity · 2024
Title X After the Cut: What Remains for Community Clinics
How the 2025 federal funding reduction played out in four DC ZIP codes — and which organizations absorbed the gap without new support.
↗ Disruptive Women · Reproductive Health · 2025
In your network on this topic
SW
Dr. Simone Walker
PhD · Epidemiology · Howard University
4 posts on maternal mortality this month →
MT
Dr. Maya Torres
MD, JD · Health Law & Policy · Georgetown Law
Medicaid + birth equity · 12 posts →
Connected campaign
Active in Move
200 Letters for Doula Certification Parity
127 of 200 submitted · July 15 deadline
Add your letter →

Event

Gather · DC Chapter

Thursday · June 26 · 6:30 PM

DC Maternal Health Convening

The Wing DC · Dupont Circle 42 attending
You attended the March convening on reproductive health. Two speakers tonight were there.
Context for tonight
The main issue
DC maternal mortality is 3× the national average, driven by hospital closures in Wards 7 and 8. Tonight will focus on advocacy infrastructure after the recent federal funding cut.
Key terms you'll hear
Community birth centers, Title X funding, doula certification parity, Ward 8 hospital gap.
From your saved posts
Dr. Kim's post on the 2.6× mortality disparity — the CDC data she cited is likely to come up tonight.
Speakers
NK
Dr. Nadia Kim
MD, MPH · OB-GYN
Johns Hopkins Medicine
SW
Dr. Simone Walker
PhD · Epidemiology
Howard University
TP
Tanya Phillips
Executive Director
DC Birth Justice Alliance

Event

Gather · Research

Friday · June 27 · 12:00 PM

Endometriosis Research: From Diagnosis Delay to Policy Action

Howard University Hospital · Washington, DC 18 attending
Context for Friday
The main issue
Average diagnosis delay for endometriosis is 7–10 years — longer for Black women. This roundtable connects that diagnostic failure to the policy levers that could change it: research funding, training mandates, and OBGYN curriculum reform.
Key terms you'll hear
Diagnostic delay, laparoscopic confirmation, NIH Women's Health Initiative, ENDO Act reintroduction, excision surgery access.
Why it connects to DW
DW's Research Equity focus area was built specifically for gaps like this — conditions that are underfunded and under-diagnosed because of who they affect.
Speakers
PR
Dr. Priya Rao
MD · Reproductive Endocrinology
Georgetown University Medical Center
JL
Dr. Jasmine Lee
PhD · Women's Health Policy
NIH Office of Research on Women's Health

Event

Gather · Advocacy Briefing

Saturday · June 28 · 2:00 PM · Virtual

Moving the Doula Bill: What Advocates Need to Know Now

Virtual · Zoom — link in confirmation email 67 attending
Context for Saturday
Where the bill stands
The Doula Certification Parity Act is in DC Council committee. DC Birth Justice Alliance needs 200 letters by July 15 — 73 still short. This briefing is the last organized push before the comment period closes.
What you'll walk away with
A ready-to-submit letter template pre-filled with your credentials, a list of Council members still undecided, and a talking-points card for direct constituent outreach.
Key terms you'll hear
Doula certification parity, Medicaid reimbursement parity, birth attendant scope, DC Council committee markup, Ward 7/8 birth outcomes.
You attended 2 prior DW events on maternal health where Tanya Phillips spoke. View your thread →
Speakers
TP
Tanya Phillips
Executive Director
DC Birth Justice Alliance
CR
Carmen Ruiz
Director of Policy
Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington
SW
Dr. Simone Walker
PhD · Epidemiology
Howard University

DC Maternal Health Convening · June 26

Listen Mode

Capturing key points as they emerge

Maternal Health DC maternal mortality is 3× national average — driven by hospital closures in Wards 7 & 8 per Simone Walker
Policy Title X funding cut impacts 4 community clinics in DC — Tanya Phillips citing legislation passed March 2025
Action DC Birth Justice Alliance launching doula certification parity bill — needs 200 letters by July 15
Research 2.6× racial disparity in maternal outcomes holds after controlling for income, insurance, and geography — Dr. Nadia Kim, Johns Hopkins
Statistic Ward 8 has 1 OB-GYN per 4,200 women vs. 1 per 1,800 nationally — a distribution failure, not a workforce shortage
Resource Letter template + ANC commissioner contacts published to Voice — deadline July 15
Synthesizing
3 speakers · 6 key points
DC Maternal Health Convening

Listen Mode · DC Maternal Health Convening

From tonight's convening

June 26, 2026 · The Wing DC · 3 speakers captured

Key themes — tap source to verify
1.
DC maternal mortality is 3× the national average, with hospital closures in Wards 7 & 8 as the structural driver. Not an access problem — a deliberate disinvestment.
Dr. Simone Walker · PhD, Epidemiology · Howard University
"The data on Ward closures is not ambiguous. This is a policy choice with a body count."
Unverified — review before sharing
Reviewed ✓
2.
Recent Title X funding cuts removed support from 4 community clinics. Impact falls disproportionately on Ward 8 patients, who have the fewest alternatives.
Tanya Phillips · Executive Director · DC Birth Justice Alliance
"We're 170 letters short. If you're in this room, you know someone who can write one."
Unverified — review before sharing
Reviewed ✓
3.
DC Birth Justice Alliance is moving a doula certification parity bill. 200 letters of support needed by July 15. Contact your ANC commissioner.
Tanya Phillips · Executive Director · DC Birth Justice Alliance
"The certification parity bill closes the gap between what doulas do and what Medicaid covers. It's overdue."
Unverified — review before sharing
Reviewed ✓
Speakers captured
Dr. Simone Walker
PhD · Epidemiology · Howard University
"The data on Ward closures is not ambiguous. This is a policy choice with a body count."
Tanya Phillips
Executive Director · DC Birth Justice Alliance
"We're 170 letters short. If you're in this room, you know someone who can write one."
Dr. Nadia Kim
MD, MPH · OB-GYN · Johns Hopkins
"The 2.6× disparity I published holds even when you control for income, insurance, and geography. It is race."
Will publish as
Three themes from tonight's DC Maternal Health Convening — including the doula certification parity bill moving in the next 3 weeks. Sources: Simone Walker (Howard), Tanya Phillips (DC Birth Justice Alliance), Nadia Kim (Johns Hopkins). [Full evidence linked]
Tap a source chip to verify · flag to mark unverified

Listen Summary · Ready

Where should this go?

3 themes · 3 speakers · DC Maternal Health Convening

Save to Gather
Indexed to DC Maternal Health Convening · June 26
Publish to Voice
Share as a sourced post with linked evidence
Attach to a campaign
DC Birth Justice — Doula Certification Parity Bill

Gather is always saved. Voice and Move are optional.

Gather DC & virtual
Past events you attended

Host an event

Gather · New event

Event type

Your briefing

Gather · Pre-event prep

Briefing · Assembled for you

DC Maternal Health & Policy Happy Hour

Tonight · 6:30 PM The Wing DC · Dupont Circle
Who's speaking
NK
Dr. Nadia Kim
MD, MPH · OB-GYN · Johns Hopkins
Will present on the 2.6× Black maternal mortality disparity and what the new CDC data means for DC advocacy.
SW
Dr. Simone Walker
PhD · Epidemiology · Howard University
Focusing on hospital closure data for Wards 7 & 8 and the structural drivers of DC's maternal health gap.
DW reads on this topic
Maternal Health
Ward 8 and the Closing of DC's Safety Net
Disruptive Women · 2024
Reproductive Health
Title X After the Cut: What Remains for Community Clinics
Disruptive Women · 2025
What's at stake tonight
The Doula Certification Parity Act is in DC Council committee. DC Birth Justice Alliance is 73 letters short of the 200 needed by July 15. Tonight's speakers will likely make a direct ask. If you're willing to write one, the template is ready in Move.
Your history with this issue
You attended 2 prior DW events on maternal health. Tanya Phillips spoke at both. View your thread →
346 members · 12 in your focus areas
MT
Dr. Maya Torres
MD · Maternal-Fetal Medicine
Georgetown University Medical Center · DC
Maternal Health Reproductive Health
PN
Priya Nair
Health Policy Analyst
Dept. of Health & Human Services · DC
Research Equity Digital Health
SW
Dr. Simone Walker
PhD · Epidemiology
Howard University · DC
Maternal Health Health Equity
CR
Carmen Ruiz
Executive Director
Planned Parenthood DC Metro
Reproductive Health Health Equity

Profile

Find · Member

MT
Dr. Maya Torres
MD · Maternal-Fetal Medicine
Georgetown University Medical Center · Washington, DC
Maternal Health Reproductive Health Health Equity
12
Posts
7
Events
53
Network
Recent posts
The research is unambiguous: continuous doula support reduces C-section rates, NICU admissions, and postpartum complications. Every dollar spent on doula care saves $4.30 in hospital costs. This isn't advocacy. It's health economics.
Ward 8 has one OB-GYN for every 4,200 women of reproductive age. The national average is 1 per 1,800. We don't have a workforce problem. We have a distribution problem — and it's a policy choice.

Profile

Find · Member

PN
Priya Nair
Health Policy Analyst
Dept. of Health & Human Services · Washington, DC
Research Equity Digital Health
8
Posts
4
Events
31
Network
Recent posts
The FDA approved three new women's health devices last year. Average trial size for women's health AI: 340 participants. For cardiac AI: 1,200. The disparity in how we validate technology is the same disparity that shows up in outcomes.
Digital health tools reach the patients who already have smartphones and stable internet. The women most likely to need those tools are the least likely to have reliable access to them. We keep designing for a population that already has options.

Profile

Find · Member

SW
Dr. Simone Walker
PhD · Epidemiology
Howard University · Washington, DC
Maternal Health Health Equity
19
Posts
11
Events
87
Network
Recent posts
Three of four hospital closures in DC over the last decade happened in majority-Black wards. We call this a healthcare desert. It is a policy choice, made over decades, and it has a body count.
The DC Maternal Mortality Review data: 89% of deaths were determined to be preventable. That number doesn't make it into the coverage. The 3× national average does. We keep reporting the symptom, not the finding.

Profile

Find · Member

CR
Carmen Ruiz
Executive Director
Planned Parenthood DC Metro · Washington, DC
Reproductive Health Health Equity
6
Posts
14
Events
128
Network
Recent posts
Medicaid covers 75% of abortions for low-income women in states where it's permitted. In states with full Hyde restrictions, the same women face a 3.5× higher rate of unintended births. This is not a side effect of the policy. It is the point.
I've spent 12 years running a clinic in a city where access is theoretically protected. A woman who can't take Tuesday off, can't cover transit, and can't find childcare has no access. Theoretical access is not access.

My profile

Jordan Koenig

JK
Jordan Koenig
MD · OB-GYN
Georgetown University Medical Center · Washington, DC
Maternal Health Reproductive Health Health Equity
2
Comment periods responded
3
Bills tracked
340
Members mobilized
Voice
5 of your 8 posts sourced to primary evidence — CDC data, CBO scores, or clinical research. Sourced posts drive 3.1× more response than unsourced.
Estimated reach: 2,847 members. The doula economics post has been read by 6 members outside your network.
Campaign contributions
Comment Period
200 Letters for Doula Certification Parity
You submitted a letter
Campaign total: 127 of 200 letters submitted. 73 still needed by July 15.
Progress to goal63.5%
March
DC Black Maternal Health March
You RSVPed · shared with your network
6 of your connections signed up after you shared. 340 members marched on June 29.
Hearing
Oppose the Federal Medicaid Rollback
You submitted testimony to Senate Finance Committee
Your testimony + 88 other DW members submitted responses before the June 30 close.
Gather footprint
7
Events attended
1
Listen summary
1
Shared to Voice
Your advocacy this month
216
written responses submitted collectively through campaigns you contributed to — 127 doula letters, 89 Medicaid testimonies. Plus 340 members marching together.
Move Active campaigns

Campaign

Move · Comment period

Comment Period · DC Council

200 Letters for Doula Certification Parity

Closes July 15 · 73 letters still needed
Campaign impact
127
Letters
submitted
73
Needed
by Jul 15
18
Days
remaining
Progress63.5%
Why this matters
The Doula Certification Parity Act would require DC Medicaid to reimburse certified doulas at parity with other birth attendants. Evidence from states with parity shows 32% reduction in C-sections and $4,300 in savings per birth among Medicaid recipients. DC's maternal mortality rate is 3× the national average — concentrated in Wards 7 & 8.
Evidence brief — tap any claim to trace its source
DC maternal mortality is 3× the national average — concentrated in Wards 7 & 8, driven by hospital closures and systematic disinvestment.
CDC Maternal Mortality Surveillance Report · 2023
"The District of Columbia reported a maternal mortality ratio of 37.3 per 100,000 live births — approximately 3× the national rate of 12.6."
States with Medicaid doula parity have seen a 32% reduction in C-section rates among Medicaid-enrolled patients over a 3-year period.
Gruber & Chua · JAMA Health Forum · 2023
"States implementing Medicaid doula coverage parity showed a 32% reduction in cesarean delivery rates among Medicaid-enrolled patients, with the largest effect seen in majority-Black zip codes."
Certified doula support saves an estimated $4,300 per birth in Medicaid costs through reduced C-sections and NICU admissions.
Congressional Budget Office · H.R. 4120 Cost Analysis · 2024
"CBO estimates average Medicaid expenditure reduction of $4,300 per birth in states with certified doula reimbursement parity, driven primarily by reduced cesarean rates and NICU admissions."
The Black–white maternal mortality gap persists after controlling for income, insurance status, and geography — and widens with education.
Petersen et al. · Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report · 2019
"Black women experienced 2.5× the maternal mortality rate of white women after controlling for age, income, insurance status, and geographic region. The disparity widened with higher educational attainment."
Your letter — ready to submit
JK
Jordan Koenig
OB-GYN · Georgetown University Medical Center
Dear DC Council Member,

As an OB-GYN at Georgetown University Medical Center, I write in strong support of the Doula Certification Parity Act. The clinical evidence is clear: continuous doula support reduces maternal complications, C-section rates, and postpartum readmission — particularly for Black women in under-resourced communities.

DC's maternal mortality rate is among the highest of any major US city. This bill is a structurally sound, evidence-based intervention. I urge the Council to advance it without delay.
Your credentials and affiliation are pre-filled from your profile. Tap to edit before submitting.

Campaign

Move · Senate Hearing

Public Hearing · Senate Finance Committee

Oppose the Federal Medicaid Rollback — Submit Testimony

Comment period closes June 30 · Public testimony open
Campaign impact
89
Responses
from DW members
14
States
represented
2
Days
remaining
Momentum89 responses
Why this matters
The proposed Medicaid restructuring would convert federal matching funds to block grants, giving states the authority to cap enrollment and cut covered services. For women's health, the projected impact is severe: an estimated 4.7M women would lose access to reproductive care, prenatal services, and postpartum follow-up. States with existing maternal mortality crises — DC, Louisiana, Mississippi — would face the deepest cuts first.
Evidence brief — tap any claim to trace its source
60% of US births are covered by Medicaid — the largest single eligibility category at risk under per-capita cap restructuring.
Kaiser Family Foundation · State Medicaid Profiles · 2023
"Medicaid finances 60% of births in the United States. Pregnant and postpartum women constitute the largest single Medicaid eligibility category — coverage contraction under per capita cap models would disproportionately affect this population."
Block grant conversions are projected to reduce Medicaid enrollment by 14–17% over 10 years — $625 billion in reduced federal spending absorbed by states.
Congressional Budget Office · Budget and Economic Outlook · 2024
"Per capita cap arrangements in Medicaid are projected to reduce federal spending by $625 billion over ten years. CBO estimates state coverage reductions of 14–17% of current enrollment as states absorb increased cost exposure."
States that restricted Medicaid coverage showed significantly higher maternal mortality rates compared to expansion states — a gap that widened from 2014 to 2020.
Sommers, Gawande & Baicker · New England Journal of Medicine · 2017
"Coverage expansions were associated with significant reductions in maternal and all-cause mortality. States declining expansion showed persistently higher mortality rates — a gap that widened through 2020 as the post-expansion cohort aged into the data."
Your testimony — ready to submit
JK
Jordan Koenig
OB-GYN · Georgetown University Medical Center
To the Senate Finance Committee,

I write as an OB-GYN at Georgetown University Medical Center to oppose the proposed Medicaid block grant restructuring. My patients — many of them Medicaid beneficiaries — rely on this coverage for prenatal care, postpartum visits, and reproductive health services that have no private-market equivalent at accessible cost.

This proposal will not reduce spending. It will shift the burden of uncompensated care onto hospitals and clinicians in states least equipped to absorb it. The evidence on block grant outcomes is unambiguous: coverage contracts, maternal outcomes worsen, and the communities most affected are those already facing the highest rates of preventable mortality.

I urge the Committee to reject this restructuring and to preserve the federal match structure that keeps obstetric care accessible for the 4.7 million women whose coverage is at risk.
Your credentials and affiliation are pre-filled from your profile. Tap to edit before submitting.

Move · Mobilization

DC Black Maternal
Health March

Sunday · June 29 · 10 AM

Lincoln Memorial → Capitol Hill. Organized by DC Birth Justice Alliance. 340 DW members attending. You followed this campaign in April.

Your history

Gather · Maternal Health

You've attended 2 DW events on maternal health. Tonight's speakers were at both. Here's what carried forward.
Your thread on this issue
November 2024
DW Winter Convening — Maternal Health in Crisis
Dr. Nadia Kim presented the 2.6× Black maternal mortality disparity for the first time publicly in DC. You attended and saved her CDC citation.
Saved · Dr. Kim's CDC source
March 2025
DW Spring Policy Briefing — Title X & Community Clinics
Tanya Phillips outlined the legislative path for doula reimbursement. 200 letters were identified as the pressure point. You shared her remarks to your Voice feed.
Shared · Tanya Phillips' remarks
Tonight — June 26
DC Maternal Health & Policy Happy Hour
Both speakers are returning. The doula letter campaign needs 73 more letters by July 15. Your prior engagement puts you at the center of tonight's ask.
Listening in background
DC Maternal Health Convening · Tap for summary