Black Maternal Health Caucus Announces $9+ Million in Federal Grant Awards Based on the Kira Johnson Act in the Momnibus

May 15, 2026
Press Release

WASHINGTON – In Fiscal Year 2025, over $9 million was awarded to 11 community-based organizations through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Minority Health for its Healthy Families Community-Based Perinatal Health Initiative (COPHI). This grant funding was initiated by the Black Maternal Health Caucus (BMHC) under the Biden-Harris administration through the congressional appropriations process. 

This new round of funding brings the total amount awarded through the program to $36 million to date. Starting in FY2023, the BMHC has secured funding every year in the annual federal appropriations package to support this program, which is based on the Kira Johnson Act in the Momnibus. The Momnibus is a comprehensive package of 14 bills designed to address every driver of maternal mortality, morbidity, and disparities in the U.S. 

COPHI directly funds community-based perinatal health services for moms in communities with high rates of adverse maternal health conditions. The FY25 awardees are listed below: 

  • Public Health Foundation Enterprises, Inc. dba Heluna Health, CA* - $1,250,000
  • The Regents of the University of California, Irvine, CA - $334,000
  • Clayton County Health District, Jonesboro, GA -  $920,000
  • Boston Public Health Commission, Boston, MA - $698,868
  • Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI -  $978,000
  • Saint Francis Medical Center, Cape Girardeau, MO -  $947,066
  • University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE - $561,268
  • The Children’s Home Society of New Jersey, Trenton, NJ** -  $1,250,000
  • Washington County, Hillsboro, OR - $613,888
  • Women and Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, Providence, RI - $829,000
  • Bexar County Hospital District DBA University Health, San Antonio, TX - $958,500

*Project implemented in 4 Parishes in Louisiana: Orleans, Jefferson, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard.

**Project implemented in Mercer, Monmouth, and Ocean Counties, New Jersey, and Puerto Rico.

To learn more about the Healthy Families Community-Based Perinatal Health Initiative, visit here. 

For a full list of previous awardees, visit the Momnibus Money Tracker.

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