An Act respecting the development of a national perinatal mental health strategy

Bill C-265 was a Private Member's Bill establishing a federal framework for a National Perinatal Mental Health Strategy. The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada estimates approximately 23 percent of new Canadian mothers experience perinatal depression or anxiety during pregnancy or in the first year postpartum (versus the broader-population estimate of 10 to 15 percent for any major depressive episode). The bill called for federal-provincial-territorial coordination on universal perinatal mental-health screening, expanded postpartum-care funding through Canada Health Transfer health priorities, and a binding annual public reporting requirement on perinatal-mental-health-services access.