Mental health is the most common complication of pregnancy and childbirth. In the U.S., up to 1 in 3 women experience a perinatal mental health condition.
Most of these women go undiagnosed and even fewer receive adequate care. The cost of that gap is more than $14 billion a year in the U.S. alone. That doesn’t include the costs and long-term impact on infant health, family stability, or workforce attrition .
Maternal mental health has long been hidden or ignored until a crisis situation makes it to the news. But that is starting to shift.
We’re now seeing early signs of momentum. Innovators including researchers, clinicians and start-up founders are rethinking the care model to conduct screening earlier. New care delivery platforms are forming to provide care to women at risk. Investors are watching closely after early success in adjacent family health platforms like Maven Clinic , Carrot , Progyny, Inc. , and Ovia Health by Labcorp. Maternal mental health is no longer a niche category. It’s becoming a strategic growth area in women’s health and digital behavioral care.
This report maps where innovation is happening across the continuum of care. It also identifies where there’s opportunity for validation, investment, and collaboration. We highlight emerging startups, grant-funded pilots, digital therapeutics in development, and a new epigenetic test for early diagnosis.
The most effective maternal mental health solutions work across the care continuum, from awareness and early detection to clinical intervention and long-term support.
Platforms like LunaJoy Health , Cerula Care, and Joyuus are working to normalize maternal mental health conversations and lower barriers to care. These companies provide communities, expert content, and simple entry points into next-level services.
Center M is extending this model with culturally attuned education and hybrid care delivery for underserved populations. Kilkari, a maternal health service reaching millions of women in India through mobile voice messaging, shows how simple technology can deliver at scale. A GSMA case study found that Kilkari improved maternal knowledge and increased care-seeking behaviors, especially in lower-resource regions.
The current standard of screening in the US, a paper based or digital version of the EPDS was developed over 30 years ago and is ripe for innovation. Clinical evidence for early screening and intervention is building. A recent study in Frontiers in Global Women’s Health found that early mental health screening significantly improves both maternal outcomes and infant development. Perinatal mental health problems can severely affect the infant before and after birth. Perinatal mental health problems correlate with low infant birth weight, restricted fetal growth, as well as social, emotional, behavioural and cognitive development of the child and changes in brain structures and functioning of the child.
Startups like Delfina, EXO, Motherocity, and Gravidas Diagnostics are addressing early screening with predictive models, remote diagnostics, and at-home assessments. These tools are built to integrate into prenatal workflows and help providers intervene earlier. Other tools like LEIA Health are exploring voice biomarkers and passive monitoring for early detection.
Dionysus Health is advancing epigenetic screening to identify high-risk patients in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy, in the same way we screen for gestational diabetes, anemia, and pre-eclampsia.
Validated, scalable interventions remain limited. Curio's MamaLift Plus, one of the first FDA-cleared digital therapeutics for postpartum depression, is a promising signal. LunaJoy and Center M are delivering therapy and psychiatry virtually, using flexible models that can work within Medicaid, employer, and health system contexts.
Other startups like Happy Mother, CareMom, and Love4Mum are creating tiered support that combines coaching, peer connection, and clinical care.
New research supports the potential of lightweight behavioral programs. A 2025 randomized controlled trial published in BMC Psychology showed that a virtual intervention based on Pender’s Health Promotion Model significantly reduced postpartum depression symptoms. The program was delivered entirely through commonly used messaging apps. These findings validate the potential of accessible, structured digital care.
Meanwhile, general behavioral platforms like Woebot (clinical trial started) and SilverCloud (clinically validated) are adapting their frameworks for perinatal populations. This could accelerate adoption and payer engagement.
Maternal mental health does not end at six weeks postpartum. Platforms like Mahmee , Partum Health, and Canopie are extending care through the first year and beyond. These models embed mental health support into lactation visits, chronic care, and pediatric touchpoints.
Boober and Millie Health are using doulas, peer groups, and AI chat to stay connected with mothers during vulnerable moments. PRISM, a program developed at UMass, is being studied for its ability to reduce long-term mental health risk in new parents.
These companies are also helping to reframe maternal mental health as a reimbursable, ongoing service. That shift is critical for long-term sustainability.
Perinatal mental health conditions don’t only affect the mother. They have lasting impacts on infant health and development.
Untreated maternal depression has been linked to low birth weight, restricted fetal growth, and impaired bonding. Neuroimaging studies now show a connection between prenatal depression and premature brain development in infants. One recent finding revealed reduced cortical thickness and abnormal white matter structure in children exposed to high maternal depressive symptoms.
These aren’t small effects. They are foundational changes in early development, which makes perinatal mental health a pediatric concern as much as a maternal one.
Based on our landscape analysis, the following areas hold the greatest opportunity for innovation and validation:
What’s needed now is more investment in this space and the development of strategic platforms and partnerships that span the full continuum of care. The Femtech Horizon Map for Maternal Mental Health is a starting point for identifying these opportunities and accelerating meaningful progress in women’s health.
Femovate is a women-owned, women-led company specializing in product strategy, design, and validation for women's health solutions. When you're developing a product, platform or new business concept, our team can help bring your innovation to market. Connect with us to explore collaboration opportunities.
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