In 2024, the Legislature directed the Office of Financial Management (OFM) in coordination with the Department of Revenue (DOR) to conduct a study of costs to the state related to nonprofit health care providers, facilities, and insurers focused on state and federal tax preferences such as tax-preferred capital financing and other public reimbursement streams outside of health care claims payments. (Section 23, Chapter 376, Laws of 2024.) Many of these deductions are not specific to health care operations and are applicable to a broad range of businesses or nonprofits.

This report is a significant contribution to the understanding of maternal health care in Washington state. It presents statewide findings, focusing on the pregnancy life cycle – prenatal care, labor and delivery, and postpartum care. Initiated from discussions with multiple state agency partners, this report aims to identify gaps and opportunities to enhance perinatal health care access and utilization in Washington. “Perinatal” refers to the period that includes prenatal (time before the birth), labor and delivery, and postpartum (time after the birth).