Postpartum Depression and the Affordable Care Act: Recommendations for Social Work Educators

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandates ongoing research on postpartum depression; however, very little research has been published in social work journals and in advanced-level textbooks on this topic. This article describes the problem of postpartum depression and argues that social work educators and researchers must pay greater attention to this issue in light of the ACA mandates, so that social workers can provide effective services to postpartum mothers and their children. The Council on Social Work Education's recently published Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards are considered while making curriculum recommendations on postpartum depression for social work educators.