September is Suicide Prevention Month and Maternal Suicide Awareness Month, which is an opportunity to highlight a connection that doesn’t get enough attention: suicide and overdose are significant causes of pregnancy-related deaths in Oregon. According to the Oregon Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Review Committee’s most recent biennial report, mental health conditions and substance use disorders drove more maternal deaths from 2018–2021 than any other single cause, and the committee found that the majority of these deaths were preventable. You can read the full 2025 Maternal Mortality and Morbidity report here.

As we learned during the Maternity Care Access Convening in May, Oregon still lacks important maternal mental health infrastructure, including inpatient mother-baby units, intensive outpatient programs designed for the perinatal population, and enough providers comfortable treating perinatal mental health conditions. Maureen Zalewski, a licensed clinical psychologist and professor at the University of Oregon, will present at the 2026 OPC Summit about suicide during pregnancy and postpartum.

A few support resources include:

• Oregon Psychiatric Access Line (OPAL): 1-855-966-7255
• Providers can consult the OPAL for medication management support
• Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: 988
• If you or someone you know is struggling, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available by call or text, 24/7
• OB Addiction Advice Line: 503-494-4567
• Any Oregon healthcare staff can call this 24/7 advice line for consultation for all treatment settings

Additional information, including resources for perinatal teams, can be found on the Policy Center for Maternal Health website.

The Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance is offering a four-part webinar series in fall 2026 designed specifically for healthcare and mental health providers, public health professionals, policymakers, and people with lived experience in their role as advocates. Learn more and register for the webinars here.

The Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) launched a statewide 24/7 Addiction Advice Line on Aug. 1, 2026. This line will offer consultation for all treatment settings where pregnant and postpartum patients are receiving care, including hospitals, outpatient clinics, and specialty addiction treatment settings, and will serve all health care staff at those sites.

For more information, including how to access the hotline, review the information on the OPC website and share broadly with your teams. This

program is funded by the Rural Health Transformation Program.

A soon-to-be-published study in Frontiers in Environmental Health found that wildfire smoke has become the leading source of pollution-related risk to pregnancy in the U.S. Furthermore, the Northwest was one of the regions hit hardest, with wildfire-related pollution more than doubling over the study period (2003-2019). The burden fell heaviest on low-income, rural areas, communities with significant American Indian and Alaska Native populations, and areas already facing maternity care shortages. Wildfire smoke exposure during pregnancy has been linked to higher risks of preterm birth, low birth weight, stillbirth, and certain congenital anomalies. This article discusses the study’s findings in greater depth.

With Oregon on track for its worst fire season on record, this is a timely reminder to check in on pregnant patients and community members. For information on how to reduce the effects of wildfire smoke, the OHA has a compiled list of information and resources available on their website.

As of July 1, 2026, expanded food support is available to Oregon Health Plan members through the Health-Related Social Needs (HRSN) nutrition benefit. Health Share has the capacity to provide these benefits, and most Project Nurture participants should qualify, so please help connect your clients! Depending on eligibility, members can receive grocery boxes delivered to their home or a preloaded card to shop at participating grocery stores, giving them access to fruits, vegetables, and pantry staples. If members are interested in learning more or applying, they can visit the Health Share website. If you run into any issues connecting clients to these benefits, please reach out to Kristen Lacijan (LacijanK@healthshareoregon.org) and Catherine Potter (potterc@healthshareoregon.org).

The OPC is thrilled to share that as of Sept. 1, the mobile simulation program has provided 12 simulations, focused primarily on OB hemorrhage and shoulder dystocia, and will provide three more before the end of the month.

The OPC Mobile Simulation workgroup continues meeting to inform the design of the program long term, and participating hospitals have provided invaluable input to the logistics and content of the simulations. We look forward to providing more simulations to rural hospitals over the next year!