Malama Health Secures $9.2M to Scale Doula-Led Maternal Care for Medicaid-Insured Women Nationwide

Seed round accelerates Malama Health's mission to build the national infrastructure for continuous, doula-led care across pregnancy and postpartum

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, UNITED STATES, March 12, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Malama Health, a Medicaid-first maternal health company, today announced an oversubscribed $9.2 million seed round led by Acumen America, with participation from Wisdom Ventures, Capital F, and Coyote Ventures, alongside angels from the company's pre-seed round. The raise includes a $2.3 million NIH grant and more than $1 million in California state funding, reflecting alignment from federal and state stakeholders alongside venture capital. The capital will expand Malama Health's care network across Medicaid markets, grow its Doula-Care Navigator workforce, and deepen managed care and community health center partnerships.

Modern maternity care was not designed for continuous support. Research shows that labor and delivery nurses are constrained to spend just 6-10% of their time on comfort measures and emotional support, far below the 53% that mothers expect. Women with continuous physical, emotional, and mental support through labor and into the postpartum period require fewer interventions and experience better outcomes – and for most Medicaid-insured women, who represent more than 40% of U.S. births, that support has never existed. The postpartum period is where most pregnancy-related deaths occur, yet the standard of care offers little beyond a single six-week visit.

Malama Health was built from day one to address birth equity and high risk pregnancies. Its multilingual, EHR-connected patient-facing app delivers accessible technology and educational content written at a fifth-grade literacy level, meeting women where they are. Doula care navigators are embedded within communities, working alongside clinician oversight, remote biometric monitoring (glucose, blood pressure, weight), and managed care coordination in a single connected model. Doulas attend births, conduct home visits, navigate between appointments, escalate clinical risk signals in real-time, and remain engaged through the full postpartum year.

"Women in this country are trying to navigate a sick care system that was never designed for them. Most get a handful of prenatal appointments and one postpartum visit, and then they’re on their own," said Mika Eddy, co-founder and CEO of Malama Health. "We built Malama to be the support system they should have had from the start.”

Patient-reported outcomes data from more than 2,500 women show a 6% decrease in NICU admissions, a 9% decrease in C-section rates, and a 38% decrease in preterm birth rates. A randomized controlled trial conducted at Tufts Medical Center found that women who used Malama during pregnancy were significantly less likely to develop diabetes, reporting a 40% difference in postpartum diabetes outcomes versus standard care.

"Health equity in maternal care requires trust,” said Veenu Aulakh, Director at Acumen America. “Malama Health has earned that trust in communities that have been failed by the healthcare system for generations, and the outcomes data shows what's possible when you build care around women rather than around appointments.”

Malama Health’s app has been used by over 45,000 women across all fifty states, with Malama-generated reports touching over 600 clinics and hospitals nationwide. Malama is in-network with Medicaid plans across California, Texas and Colorado with active expansion into additional states this year.

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About Malama Health

Malama Health connects community-based doulas, health plans, and clinical systems across Medicaid markets through a coordinated operating model that standardizes referral workflows, data reporting, risk escalation, and quality measurement. By integrating remote patient monitoring, chronic disease management, and Doula-Care Navigators, Malama Health supports women from pregnancy through the postpartum year, addressing clinical needs, social determinants of health, and long-term disease prevention in one place. Learn more at heymalama.co.

Melissa
Chin
+1 646-527-1827
melissa@ontopstrategy.com

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