First Round of Funding Granted for Maternal Mortality Studies Under Herrera Beutler Bill

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced recently that it is funding the first round of grants to support 25 states’ efforts to combat maternal mortality. The funding was made possible through a bipartisan bill introduced by Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Battle Ground. 

“Our country’s maternal death rate has reached a crisis level, which is why it’s welcome news that there’s now force being put behind our mission to make pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period safer for all women. I am so pleased to see the CDC award its first round of critical grant funding to allow my Preventing Maternal Deaths Act to take effect in our communities,” Herrera Beutler said in a statement. “This money will support and provide critical resources to states like Washington as they review every maternal death and make course corrections to save future moms’ lives.”

The CDC money will fund Maternal Mortality Review Committees in 25 states. The committees will investigate and review every maternal death and make recommendations to prevent future deaths during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. 

“Representative Herrera Beutler has helped our nation make important steps to start understanding, and reducing, our rate of maternal mortality,” said Ted L. Anderson, M.D., Ph.D., president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. “Legislation she sponsored, the Preventing Maternal Deaths Act (PL 115-344), and now the federal appropriations she helped secure to fund its implementation, are critical in our efforts to ensure healthy moms and healthy babies. Thanks to her leadership, we will see real progress in what should be a priority for everyone — eliminating preventable maternal deaths and helping make sure no babies grow up without their mothers. This is how the legislative process is supposed to work, and we are thrilled to have such a committed partner in the Congresswoman.”



Washington state received $375,000. Other states receiving funding between $150,000 and $600,000 include Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah (collaborating with Wyoming) and Wisconsin.