Herrera Beutler takes care of maternal mortality

Maternal health care in the United States is frankly a shame, and Honorable MEP Jaime Herrera Beutler deserves credit for throwing a legislative spotlight on this issue.

According to the Harvard Chan School Maternal Health Task Force, the maternal mortality rate in the United States is 17 deaths per 100,000 births, or approximately 700 to 900 mothers who die from pregnancy or birth-related complications.

The American Journal of Managed Care (AJMC) says two-thirds of these deaths are preventable. (In Washington, the rate is 13.8 deaths per 100,000 births. California is the lowest at 4 deaths per 100,000, while Louisiana is the highest at 58.1, according to the World Population Review.)

AJMC goes on to report that “The United States has the highest maternal mortality rate of 11 developed countries, has a relative undersupply of maternity services, and is the only country that does not guarantee access to home visits or paid parental leave in the postpartum period. ”

What makes the sad status of the United States even more shameful is that it spends the highest percentage of its gross domestic product on health care when compared to other wealthy nations, according to the AJMC.

Herrera Beutler was at the forefront of Congress in improving the care of expectant and new mothers and their babies.

In September 2020, the House passed the Helping Medicaid Offer Maternity Services Act, which was endorsed by the Battle Ground Republican. The bill gives states the option to extend Medicaid coverage for the entire one-year period after the birth. The cut-off for postpartum care was 60 days.

In June, the House approved another Herrera Beutler bill that re-approves federal efforts to help states improve and expand newborn screening programs, support and support newborn screening training for parents and providers Ensure laboratory quality and supervision.

An important step in combating maternal mortality is improving access to care, in particular increasing the number and availability of midwives. Herrera Beutler is also working on this. In May, she introduced the Midwives for Maximizing Optimal Maternity Services (MOMS) Act, which aims to address the shortage of maternity care providers by establishing two new funding streams for midwifery training.

According to the AJMC, “the role of midwives in terms of mother and child outcomes and more efficient use of health care resources has been found to be comparable to or preferable to physician-led care. The WHO (World Health Organization) recommends midwives as an evidence-based approach to reducing maternal mortality. “

Along with the MOMS Act, Herrera Beutler also introduced the BABIES Act for birth access in favor of improved basic facilities. The BABIES Act aims to expand access to freestanding birthing homes for Medicaid recipients. Such centers, according to Herrera Beutler in a press release when the bills were introduced, led to lower premature birth rates, lower birth weight rates, lower caesarean rates and cost savings of $ 2,000 per mother-child pair, according to a “midwifery care model.”

For a country that purportedly worships mothers, maternal mortality rates in the United States should be a clear call to action. Let’s hope that our colleagues at Herrera Beutler share their concern and support their efforts to provide high quality care to all expectant and new mothers.

The Columbian is a family-owned newspaper based in Vancouver, Washington.