From Moms Rising (https://www.momsrising.org/):
YOUR voice, your petitions, and your calls are working!
Last week, Congress took action to ensure historic investments to save moms’ lives, end racial & ethnic maternal health disparities, and advance birth equity. As negotiations continue, we must keep the pressure on!
**TAKE ACTION NOW at https://action.momsrising.org/sign/maternalhealthBBB – tell your member of Congress to support critical investments in maternal health in the Build Back Better Act!***
Right now, the United States is the most dangerous place to give birth in the developed world, [1] with major racial disparities with Black women losing their lives at 3 to 4 times more than the rate of white women due to maternity-related causes, independent of age, economic background, or education. [2] This is a fact that has not changed for several decades. [3]
The Build Back Better Act includes critical investments to end our nation’s maternal health crisis, including key elements of the Black Maternal Health Momnibus to address health disparities. And great news! It just cleared its first major hurdle in Congress. The Build Back Better Act will:
- Grow and diversify the perinatal workforce to ensure that every mom in America receives maternity care and support from people she can trust;
- Make critical investments in social determinants of health that influence maternal health outcomes, like housing, transportation, and nutrition;
- Invest in maternal mental health care and substance-use disorder treatments;
- Address the impacts of climate change on maternal and infant health outcomes;
- Provide funding to community-based organizations that are working to improve maternal health outcomes, particularly for Black women;
- Grow and diversify the perinatal workforce to ensure that every mom in America receives maternity care and support from people she can trust;
- Improve data collection processes and quality measures to better understand the causes of the maternal health crisis in the United States and inform solutions to address it;
- Invest in digital tools like telehealth to improve maternal health outcomes in underserved areas;
- Invest in reducing maternal mortality and require Medicaid and CHIP to cover full benefits for one year for pregnant and postpartum women. This, along with other key provisions of the Momnibus legislation makes over $1 billion in historic investments in the health and care of moms.
We know that at least 60% of maternal deaths can be prevented, and infant mortality reduced, with investment in public policies and culturally competent care. Together we can tackle this crisis. Keep the pressure on and help ensure that every person that gives birth has a safe and healthy experience and the opportunity to watch their child grow up and thrive.
SIGN our letter now to Congress in support of saving lives, maternal health, and birth equity!!
Together we are a powerful voice in the movement to save moms.
References:
[1] U.S. is the most dangerous place to give birth in the developed world, NBC News [2][3] The Black–White Disparity in Pregnancy-Related Mortality From 5 Conditions: Differences in Prevalence and Case-Fatality Rates, US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health
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