Latest news with #maternalhealth
CBS News
an hour ago
- Health
- CBS News
Michigan officials report lowest infant mortality rates in state history
Michigan is recording its lowest infant mortality in history, with a combination of mother-and-baby health initiatives credited for pushing up survival rates. The topic was among those discussed during the annual Maternal Infant Health Summit, which met June 17 and 18 in Lansing. The event, hosted by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, included sharing ideas on how to improve the health of Michigan's new mothers and babies. "We are proud of the improvements we are making and will continue to make when it comes to the health of moms and babies," said Elizabeth Hertel, MDHHS director, in a press release about the conference. Infant mortality is defined as the death of a baby who was born alive but died before their first birthday. The most common causes include prematurity, low birth weight, congenital anomalies and accidents. The data provided by state officials is as follows: During 2023, 607 Michigan infants under the age of 1 died. That's a ratio of 6.1 infant deaths per 1,000 live births. During 2022, there were 650 deaths for a ratio of 6.3 deaths per 1,000 live births. The Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies initiative, launched in 2021, is getting credit for this improvement. The specific pieces in that initiative include continuing Medicaid coverage to one year after birth, making doula services available to expecting parents and the CenteringPregnancy model of care. Doulas are trained to provide guidance, educational and emotional support during prenatal, labor and delivery and postpartum times. There are more than 700 doulas on Michigan's Doula Registry; nearly 500 of whom are Medicaid-enrolled providers. CenteringPregnancy is an approach that integrates routine prenatal care with additional education about health, pregnancy and parenting within a group setting. In Michigan, there are currently 35 CenteringPregnancy sites and three CenteringParenting sites, including some medical providers and clinic locations in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Livonia, Pontiac, Sterling Heights, Westland and Ypsilanti.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump Has A New Plan To Get Women To Have More Babies. What Could Go Wrong?
In an effort to get Americans to have more children, the Trump administration has proposed ideas such as a $5,000 'baby bonus' or a $1,000 tax-deferred investment account for children born between 2025 and 2029. It's as if we're suddenly in a game of Monopoly: Have a baby, pass go and collect cash! Their concern is that declining birth rates may lead to a smaller workforce amid an aging population, potentially straining economic stability and the social safety net. But having children can be a swift way into debt. According to the Brookings Institution, a financial think tank, the average middle-income family with two children — median income $80,610 ―spends $310,605 on each child by the time they reach 17. Additionally, having children in the U.S. comes with risks that go well beyond economics. Maternal morbidity is significantly higher in the U.S. than in other developed countries, and since abortion bans came into effect in some states, deaths have risen — inTexas, maternal death shot up 56%, according to the Gender Policy Equity Institute. For white women, the rate doubled from 20 per 100,000 to 39.1; for Black women, who are historically at greater risk, rates jumped from 31.6 to 43.6 per 100,000 live births. And those are just the implications for mothers; there are risks to babies as well. I made it through birth without too many complications, but my second son nearly didn't. He was born with VACTERL syndrome, a birth defect which affects multiple body systems. In the U.S., birth defects affect 1 in 33 babies and are the leading cause of infant death, making up 1 in 5 of all infant deaths. Racial disparities persist here, too,Black infants are over twice as likely to die relative to those born to parents of other races according to KFF. My son has a 'rare' disease — fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S. have it. Collectively, however, rare diseases aren't as 'rare' as they may seem. An estimated 25 to 30 million Americans have one, and birth defects like gastroschisis — a condition in which an infant is born with its intestines protruding outside the body — carry higher risk factors for younger women. Having a child with serious medical issues is like having a bomb explode in the heart of your family. After my son's birth, I was stuck at a hospital in Greenwich, Connecticut — my doctor refused to release me — as my newborn was sent via ambulance to a hospital in New York City for surgery. Emotionally, this was devastating. My family was lucky; my son survived. My spouse had insurance coverage through his job. Our boy got the immediate and ongoing medical attention he needed. But out-of-pocket copays for the three surgeries that marked my son's first 100 days of life came to $10,000 per month. Instead of staring into our baby's eyes, we were staring into a dark abyss that foretold possible bankruptcy. As exhausted as I was nursing, pumping, tending to a very sick child and his older brother, I also lay awake at night, terrified at the possibility of losing our health insurance. We made it through that first year by the skin of our teeth. Others aren't so fortunate. With high premiums and higher deductibles, health insurance becomes prohibitive to many if not most Americans. Today, 41% of adults in the US have health care debt, according to KFF. Those without health care coverage, and possibly even those with it, are only one accident or unfortunate circumstance away from bankruptcy. The inequities in health care grow the gap between wealthy and poor. According to the Center for American Progress,congressional Republicans' plans to slash Medicaid funding and allow Affordable Care Act tax credits to expire, ACA health insurance marketplace premiums may increase by thousands of dollars each year. If the GOP dismantles the ACA, those with preexisting conditions — like my son ― could be denied coverage. The Trump administration suggests that individuals who need help are lazy; that they must earn their keep. But women and families are trying — and it's clearly not possible. Young families can't afford children. Yet conservatives insist women have them anyway. The Biden administration was criticized as elitist for forgiving student loan debt, butstudent loan debt actually delays fertility for women, especially at the higher levels. Granted, it's easy for me to suggest not having children — I have two, both nearly grown. But women deserve to know the risks that can alter their lives. As a mother, I felt helpless watching my child endure so much suffering. More recently, I regret bringing my children into a world in which abundant resources are shared as if they were scant. It's terrifying to know my sons may not have access to the support they need when they need it. In countrieslike Japan, parents get a child Italy, working women with two or more children receive additional pension Hungary, women below the age of 40 who marry for the first time are eligible to receive an interest-free general-purpose loan worth $36,000 — which is forgiven in full for those with three offspring. The program was so successful that 2,400 families applied for the loan within the first two weeks. But offering financial incentives to having children has had lukewarm success over the long term. For example,Hungary's birth rate in 2019 was 1.55 babies per woman. In 2024, it was 1.38 and declining. The underlying assumption these countries and the Trump administration make is that individuals — both women and men — inherently want children. For whatever reasons, we may not. We may have goals exclusive to family and babies. Just because a government or country 'needs' them, it doesn't mean individuals do; and just because women can biologically have them, it doesn't mean they aspire to. If the Trump administration truly wants women to have children, it should support them in real and practical ways. Offer child care facilities, adequate financial aid and programs to help families and children. Provide affordable health care that's accessible to everyone. Reinstate Medicare funding. Protect the Affordable Care Act. Recognize abortion as a part of maternal health care. Knowing it is safe to have a child, and that the child will be safe in the world it is coming into, would be much more effective and persuasive than any one-time bonus. Do you have a compelling personal story you'd like to see published on HuffPost? Find out what we're looking for here and send us a pitch at pitch@
BBC News
3 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Birthsafe: 'With di right care, women fit get Ice-cream births'
Sake of di concern she get for di high infant and maternal mortality rate for Nigeria, dis Nigeria general practice doctor don develop ogbonge ways to ensure safe child births for both mama and pikin. Dis protocol ginger Dr Idara Umoette to develop Birthsafe, to help care for women before dem get belle, during di period of pregnancy to make sure say dem born di pikin safely wit mama alive, pikin alive and proper care after dem born to avoid complications for both di mama and pikin. Wit dis kain care, Dr Umoette alias Mama Birthsafe don help many pipo wey dey suffer from infertility issues achieve pregnancy and dis she say concern both di man and di women involved. "To achieve pregnancy require equal contribution from both di man and di woman. But becos say di physical evidence of pregnancy dey mostly seen on di woman, majority of di times, di blame for infertility dey on di woman, but e go surprise you to know say more often than not, di reason wey make some couples neva get belle dey with di man." Dr Idara say from experience as she dey work wit couples wey dey face dis challenge, she identify stress as a major factor wey dey cause infertility among couples, weda na wit di man or di woman. "If you remove di stress factor, for most couples dem go achieve pregnancy. If dem man dey well rested and di women no get anytime wey go dey worry her, e no dey tay, dem don get belle. "So wen we see couples wey dey battle infertility, I go just tell dem go on a honey moon. Take your wife out make una go relax for three weeks, for majority of dem, by di time dem return dem go say, ' ah doctor, my wife don get belle o!'" Filmed and edited by Idara Monday
Times
4 days ago
- Health
- Times
Natural birth v caesarean — what the latest statistics tell us
D octors in the UK are never short of reading material thanks to a continual stream of new guidance on various aspects of clinical practice, the latest of which is designed to improve the quality of care for anyone considering a caesarean birth. Colleagues working in specialities such as dermatology and orthopaedics can choose to ignore topics like this but we GPs are expected to know something about everything, so I read it over the weekend and want to share some of the highlights. Not least because they help to dispel a myth that regularly pops up on social media: namely that having a caesarean means you can avoid the continence problems that affect so many women after giving birth. First though, a caveat. While the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) has gone to great lengths to assimilate the best evidence out there, it remains far from perfect. Indeed Nice starts the section comparing the risks and benefits of vaginal and caesarean deliveries — for mother and baby — with a warning that, despite compiling data from 30 years' worth of international research, they are not as reliable as it would like.
The Guardian
13-06-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Family of woman who died from Covid after giving birth sues Brazilian state
In the early weeks of the Covid-19 pandemic, Lidiane Vieira Frazão, 35, was expecting her second child but, even at 40 weeks pregnant, she was unable to obtain a doctor's note to start her maternity leave. Her job as a funeral agent – at times handling the bodies of people who had died from the virus – was on the long list of 'essential services' that could not be suspended during lockdown, according to a decree issued by Brazil's then-president, Jair Bolsonaro. Frazão was finally granted leave only days before giving birth, but she only received care at the second hospital she tried and, despite showing symptoms such as a runny nose and racing heart, her family say she was never tested for Covid-19. The birth went well, but Frazão returned home still struggling to breathe. She sought help at another hospital, but was only given oxygen after waiting for 10 hours. Soon after, she fell into a coma. Twenty-two days after giving birth, she died. Now, five years later, her family has filed what is believed to be the first legal action against the Brazilian state over a maternal death linked to Covid-19. 'One thing that stayed with me was a video, months after my sister's death, showing the president [Bolsonaro] mocking people who were short of breath,' said Frazão's sister, Érika, 37. 'That really hurt because my sister arrived at the hospital exactly like that.' Her family argues that Frazão – whose two sons are now 16 and five – died due to negligence, malpractice and mistreatment at the state-run hospitals where she sought care. 'She told me she was mistreated at the hospital', said her mother, Eny, 69, who is raising her two grandsons along with the children's father. Eny still remembers how lovingly her daughter planned for the second pregnancy. 'When she wasn't working, she'd lie right here on this sofa, in this very spot, talking to him in her belly,' said her mother, sitting in the family home in a bucolic corner of Rio de Janeiro's North Zone. A group of lawyers, researchers and activists supporting the lawsuit argue that the case is emblematic of a series of problems that, at one point during the pandemic, made Brazil the world leader in maternal deaths, accounting for 80% of the total. Often, the women struggled to get treatment, said anthropologist Débora Diniz, a professor at the University of Brasília and one of those behind the lawsuit. 'They'd arrive at a maternity ward and the doctor would say, 'You have Covid-19, go to a hospital.' Then at the hospital, another doctor would say, 'You're pregnant, go to the maternity ward.'' Diniz coordinates a group at the university that carried out a qualitative study to understand why so many maternal deaths were occurring in Brazil. The reasons included delays in Covid-19 testing and a reluctance to admit patients, as happened with Frazão. The researcher believes Frazão's death was also the result of 'denialism' by the then-president Bolsonaro, who actively opposed vaccines, social distancing and lockdowns, while mocking victims and promoting ineffective treatments like hydroxychloroquine. Diniz says that the Bolsonaro administration also failed to 'establish specific policies' for pregnant women, who were already known to be more vulnerable. 'It failed her and all the other women in the same situation,' said the anthropologist. The lawsuit seeks compensation and a lifelong pension for her family, as well as formal recognition of the state's responsibility for her death. The researchers and lawyers commissioned a gynaecologist and obstetrician to conduct an expert review of what happened to her. The list of alleged failings is extensive, and began as early as her prenatal care, when Frazão was reportedly never identified as having a high-risk pregnancy. According to the victim's family, there was also a racial element, as Frazão was a black woman. 'If my daughter were white, this wouldn't have happened to her,' said her mother, Eny. Immediately after giving birth, Frazão complained of shortness of breath, but doctors at the hospital reportedly dismissed it as 'anxiety' and told her to see a psychiatrist. 'That's racism,' said her sister Érika. 'Black women are always treated as if we don't feel pain or are seen as nervous or unstable.' In the lawsuit, they argue that Frazão was also a victim of 'obstetric racism' and the systemic mistreatment of Black women within Brazil's public healthcare system. During the pandemic, most of the maternal deaths were among black women; to this day, Afro-Brazilian women face twice the risk of dying during pregnancy, childbirth or postpartum compared with white women. 'There are protocols, and doctors are trained to deal with everything that happened to her – but when the patient is a black woman, all of that is ignored,' said Mariane Marçal, assistant project coordinator at Criola, the other organisation supporting the case. In 2011, Brazil became the first government to be condemned by an international conventional body – the United Nation's Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women – for a preventable maternal death. Alyne Pimentel Teixeira, 28, who was also black, died six months into her pregnancy after seeking medical care and being sent home with only a prescription but no tests. 'If Brazil had fulfilled the obligations set out in that ruling, Frazão would not have died,' said Mônica Sacramento, programme coordinator at Criola. All the hospitals named in the lawsuit are run by Rio's city government, which said the events took place under the previous mayor, that 'the teams involved have since been changed,' and that it would cooperate with the judiciary to 'help clarify the case'. Frazão's eldest sister, Mônika Frazão, 54, hopes the case will bring about change in Brazil. 'We want the state to acknowledge that it failed us, that it failed her and her children … It might be wishful thinking, but we hope this means others won't have to go through the same pain we did,' she said.
