The federal Health Resources and Services Administration on Wednesday announced $7.3 million in funding for maternal, infant and early childhood home visiting services for certain families in Maine.

The funds, administered as part of the national Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program, can be used to provide Mainers with home visits from nurses, social workers and other health care professionals as part of their prenatal and postpartum care. That includes help breastfeeding, encouraging safe sleeping practices, helping develop language and communication skills, developmental screenings and more, the administration said in a Wednesday release.

This year’s funding represents a $1.3 million increase over last year’s, according to the release.

The boost comes after President Biden signed legislation in 2022 that would double the program’s overall funding over five years – the program’s first expansion in nearly a decade, the administration said.

Vice President Kamala Harris said the expanded funding – $440 million, all told – will help address “a maternal health crisis in which women across America are dying before, during, and after childbirth at higher rates than in any other developed nation.”

In the release, Harris said the funding expansion builds on the Biden administration’s previous work to improve outcomes in maternal health care, citing a roadmap released in 2022.

Xavier Becerra, secretary of Health and Human Services, said home visits can help improve school readiness and health outcomes for young children and their families.

“Bringing home a baby can be stressful. Many new parents face additional challenges such as housing, or income insecurity, which can make the whole situation even more daunting,” Becerra said in the release.

The money is being awarded to the state Department of Health and Human Services, according to the HRSA.