Bipartisan bill would sustain funding for federal maternal health research program

WASHINGTON — The maternal death rate is declining nationwide, but hundreds of women are still dying every year from pregnancy-related complications.

It comes as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control reports more than 80% of pregnancy-related deaths here in the United States are preventable.

That’s why maternal health advocates are urging lawmakers to invest more in research.

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“Moms and families - lives are on the line,” said Tina Sherman, national director for maternal justice for MomsRising.

Tina Sherman works with the advocacy group, MomsRising. She’s been following federal efforts to try to address maternal health outcomes such the IMPROVE Initiative. It stands for Implementing a Maternal health and Pregnancy Outcomes Vision for Everyone (IMPROVE) Initiative.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) launched this program in 2019 to find ways to reduce preventable causes of maternal deaths and improve health outcomes for women before, during, and after pregnancy.

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“Whether it’s cardiovascular disease or hemorrhaging or maternal mental health disorders, really digging into the specifics and what’s needed, the specifics around what is needed to address that,” said Sherman.

But lawmakers warn this NIH IMPROVE Initiative lacks a sustained funding source to continue this work.

Earlier this year, some Democrats and Republicans in both the House and Senate introduced a bill that would allocate more than $53 million dollars annually for seven years for this program. It would also provide money for studies to research disparities within maternal health.

Sherman believes this research is critical not only at a federal level, but for local communities too.

“To collect the data, be able to take it back to community, to talk to community about what are some ways you’re already addressing this. Because we know that that’s happening,” said Sherman. “But also, then introducing evidence-based ways that the data is also showing work. So really working in collaboration with community.”

Congress isn’t scheduled to return to Capitol Hill until after Election Day so it’s unclear when this legislation will be taken up for a vote.

“We really need lawmakers to come back focused on what they can do to support families,” said Sherman.

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