Dads Matter Act of 2025

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2131 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2131

 To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a
 public awareness campaign to increase awareness of the importance of
 father inclusion and engagement in improving overall health outcomes
 during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 18, 2025

Mr. Warnock (for himself, Mr. Marshall, and Mr. Gallego) introduced the
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
                 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a
 public awareness campaign to increase awareness of the importance of
 father inclusion and engagement in improving overall health outcomes
 during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Dads Matter Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Father engagement can play an important role in
        improving maternal health care, addressing maternal mortality
        and morbidity, and bettering the development and long-term
        growth of the child.
            (2) The participation of fathers during prenatal care
        appointments provides the mother with additional support to
        recognize potential pregnancy-related complications that could
        lead to maternal mortality and morbidity.
            (3) When fathers are involved during pregnancy appointments
        and milestones, mothers are 1.5 times more likely to receive
        prenatal care in the first trimester, which improves health
        outcomes for both the mother and baby.
            (4) Father support during pregnancy can help promote
        behavioral health of the mother.
            (5) Father engagement reduces the risks of postpartum mood
        and anxiety disorders and contributes to a lower likelihood of
        preterm birth and a healthier birthweight.
            (6) Including fathers in conversations about safe sleep
        guidelines and sharing guidance about infant crying and the
        risks of shaken baby syndrome can help reduce infant deaths.
            (7) Active support of the father during breastfeeding
        greatly increases the chances of successful breastfeeding,
        which improves the physical and mental health of the baby and
        the mother.
            (8) Physical contact between the father and the baby just
        after birth and in the months following birth has been shown to
        improve the health and development of the baby, improve the
        mental health of the father, and foster father-child bonding in
        the short-term and long-term.

SEC. 3. INCREASING AWARENESS OF THE IMPORTANCE OF FATHER INCLUSION AND
              ENGAGEMENT IN THE PREGNANCY, BIRTH, AND POSTPARTUM
              PROCESS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall carry out
a public awareness campaign to increase understanding of the importance
of father inclusion and engagement in improving overall health outcomes
during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum, for both the mother and
baby.
    (b) Requirements.--The campaign under subsection (a) shall
include--
            (1) messaging intended to provide information to the public
        about the importance of a father's role in pregnancy and
        parenting;
            (2) resources and information to counter popular narratives
        that minimize the importance of engaged and involved fathers in
        pregnancy and parenting; and
            (3) resources and information that promote awareness about
        the impact of father inclusion on maternal and infant outcomes,
        including--
                    (A) the importance of father-to-infant skin-to-skin
                contact in improving the health and development of a
                newborn and fostering father-child bonding in the
                short- and long-term;
                    (B) the role of fathers in promoting the behavioral
                health of the mother;
                    (C) the role of fathers in increasing the number of
                prenatal and postpartum appointments a mother attends;
                    (D) the effects of father attendance during
                prenatal and postnatal appointments;
                    (E) the effects of paternal postpartum depression;
                    (F) the role of father support in improving rates
                of successful breastfeeding; and
                    (G) the role of father involvement in providing the
                mother with additional support to recognize potential
                pregnancy-related complications, which could include--
                            (i) preeclampsia;
                            (ii) peripartum cardiomyopathy;
                            (iii) preterm labor;
                            (iv) perinatal mood and anxiety disorders;
                            (v) pregnancy loss or miscarriage;
                            (vi) stillbirth;
                            (vii) high blood pressure;
                            (viii) cervical infections;
                            (ix) gestational diabetes;
                            (x) placental abruption;
                            (xi) ectopic pregnancy; and
                            (xii) uterine rupture.

SEC. 4. GUIDANCE TO STATES ON ENCOURAGING FATHER INCLUSION AND
              ENGAGEMENT IN THE PREGNANCY, BIRTH, AND POSTPARTUM
              PROCESS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall issue
guidance to States that addresses how States can encourage and
incentivize providers of maternity care, including hospitals, health
care systems, midwifery practices, freestanding birth centers,
community health centers, and other maternity care providers, and
providers of health care coverage, including managed care entities, to
provide training and education to health care practitioners, such as
pediatricians, obstetricians, and gynecologists, about the benefits of
including and engaging fathers in the pregnancy, birth, and postpartum
process.
    (b) Requirements.--The guidance under subsection (a) shall--
            (1) include information on how health care practitioners
        can--
                    (A) offer peer-to-peer, father-to-father
                encouragement, support, and education in communities
                that traditionally are not inclusive of fathers;
                    (B) provide fathers with information on--
                            (i) what to expect before, during, and
                        after the birth process;
                            (ii) how to better--
                                    (I) understand and support their
                                partner throughout such process; and
                                    (II) serve as an advocate in her
                                care; and
                            (iii) recommendations and protocol relating
                        to pregnancy, postpartum, and child care,
                        including--
                                    (I) maternal, infant, and routine
                                childhood vaccines;
                                    (II) maternal warning signs;
                                    (III) the importance of fetal
                                movement counting;
                                    (IV) maternal mental health and
                                postpartum recovery;
                                    (V) breastfeeding practices;
                                    (VI) health care appointments;
                                    (VII) safe sleep practices;
                                    (VIII) skin-to-skin contact;
                                    (IX) baby care, including safe
                                soothing of a crying baby;
                                    (X) child bonding; and
                                    (XI) early childhood development;
                                and
                    (C) screen fathers for depression and provide
                referrals for treatment that may positively impact
                child development and reduce the risk of adverse
                childhood experiences;
            (2) address cultural beliefs about fatherhood, a man's role
        in maternal health, and families; and
            (3) reaffirm a father's ability to play a positive and
        valuable role during pregnancy, birth, and early childhood
        development, regardless of race or ethnicity.

SEC. 5. GAO STUDY AND REPORT.

    Not later than 6 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct, and submit to
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate
and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of
Representatives a report describing the results of, a study on the
effectiveness of this Act.
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