access- Year-one award
- $212,905,591
- Lead agency
- Cabinet for Health and Family Services
- Maternal care in the plan
- Puts a dollar figure on maternal care
- Status
- Not yet solicited
What Kentucky's plan funds for maternal care
The Cabinet for Health and Family Services runs the program through the Department for Public Health; the state received $212.9 million for year one. The initiative, PoWER for short, "expands timely prenatal and postpartum care by deploying telehealth-enabled maternal care teams who will serve maternity-care deserts and high-risk regions." The state's summary sets out the need: "Kentucky is facing a maternal health crisis, with nearly half of its counties lacking obstetrics care. For nearly 6 in 10 rural women, the nearest birthing hospital is more than a half-hour away."
The plan describes how the teams work: "Each local PoWER Team will be deployed in partnership with an LHD, RHC, or FQHC. PoWER Teams will be coordinated by a centralized telehealth nurse and overseen by a delivery provider throughout prenatal and postpartum care." Patients "receive a PoWERpack (e.g., scale, blood pressure cuff, fetal doppler, educational materials, consumer-facing mobile app) to remotely monitor their health and connect with providers via telehealth." Doulas and perinatal community health workers are part of the teams. The plan's cost estimate is "approximately $15-53 million per budget period (of the hypothetical $200 million), for an estimated total of $158 million over the five RHTP budget periods." No approved year-one amount for PoWER has been published.
What is open, and what comes next
No PoWER request for applications has been issued. A community health worker certificate round that included a perinatal and infant health certificate closed August 5, 2026. The state says it "will be developing funding opportunities," expects to engage "qualified vendors and contractors," and will post solicitations publicly on its program site.
Who can apply, and where a partner fits
The three rounds we checked (community health worker certificates, community paramedicine and mobile dental care) were open only to non-profit or public organizations. PoWER teams are deployed with local health departments, rural health clinics and FQHCs and overseen by a delivery provider. A telehealth practice fits as the specialist those teams escalate to, contracted by a host organization or through a state procurement for the program's telehealth pieces.
Where Ouma fits
How tele-MFM fits Kentucky's model
A PoWERpack puts a blood pressure cuff and a fetal doppler in a rural patient's home, and a central nurse watches the readings. When a reading or a scan points to a high-risk pregnancy, the team needs a maternal-fetal medicine physician without sending the patient hours away. Ouma provides contracted maternal-fetal medicine coverage and ultrasound interpretation to rural and critical access hospitals. Ouma is licensed to practice in all 50 states and is Medicaid-enrolled in 20 states as of August 2026.
See every state's plan side by side or what a partner letter for an application looks like.
Frequently asked questions
Has Kentucky issued a PoWER request for applications?
Not as of September 30, 2026. Solicitations will be posted on the state's program site.
How much is PoWER funded at?
The plan estimates $15 million to $53 million a year and about $158 million over five years. The state hasn't published an approved year-one figure.