by Jennifer Porter Gore
Addressing an issue important to Black women, Vice President Kamala Harris rolled out a new set of national health and safety standards for hospitals that she says can help protect new mothers and stem the maternal mortality crisis.
Speaking at the national convention of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. — a sorority in which she is a member — Harris said the new standards establish clear and proper procedures for hospitals and clinics that deliver newborn babies. It also requires those facilities to stock enough specific medical supplies for any type of emergencies that a birthing mother might face.
At the same time, hospitals must have clear procedures for transferring maternity patients to other facilities if the facility can’t give patients necessary care. Hospital staff also must be trained annually on evidence-based maternal health practices.
These measures are part of the administration’s “Blueprint for Addressing the Maternal Health Crisis,” which Harris announced in 2022.
“[W]e have addressed the long-standing crisis of maternal mortality–something as you know I e been working on since I was in the Senate,” Harris said.
“Why? Because women in America die at a higher rate in connection with childbirth than women in any other wealthy nation in the world. And Black women are three times more likely to die in connection with childbirth,” she added.
40% of Black, Hispanic, and multiracial mothers reported being discriminated against when receiving maternity care.
Harris also mentioned reproductive rights and recent abortion bans passed in states like Texas.”
“In the South, where a majority of Black women call home, every state except for Virginia has a ban, many with no exception even for rape or incest,” Harris said. “One does not have to abandon their faith to agree, the government should not be telling her what to do with her body.”
Among other measures, the blueprint also extends postpartum Medicaid coverage from 2 to 12 months and encourages states to cover doula services. The administration approved postpartum extensions in 46 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Data shows that, while more women die giving birth in the U.S. than in any other wealthy nation, Black women are almost three times more likely to die than white women. Some of the reasons cited for such high maternal mortality among Black women include lack of health care coverage, insufficient postpartum care, and racial discrimination.
Roughly 40% of Black, Hispanic, and multiracial mothers reported being discriminated against when receiving maternity care and 45% of all mothers said they were reluctant to ask questions or discuss concerns with their healthcare provider, according to an April 2023 report from the Centers for Disease Control.