Category: News & Press

Booker, Menendez Introduce Resolution Designating January 23 as Maternal Health Awareness Day

JANUARY 23, 2023 WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Cory Booker and Bob Menendez (both D-N.J.) introduced a resolution recognizing January 23 as Maternal Health Awareness Day. In 2018, New Jersey became the first state to recognize January 23 as Maternal Health Awareness Day through the work of the Tara Hansen Foundation, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers New Jersey […]

Casey, Cassidy Bill to Protect Pregnant Workers in the Workplace Passes Senate

DECEMBER 22, 2022 Bipartisan Pregnant Workers Fairness Act would ensure pregnant workers have reasonable accommodations at work, like a stool or water bottle Bill passed as an amendment to the FY23 federal spending bill Casey first introduced landmark legislation in 2012 Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Chair and […]

Merkley-Murkowski Bill Expanding Breastfeeding Protections for Workers Poised to Become Law

12.22.22 Washington D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) today announced that their bipartisan Providing Urgent Maternal Protections (PUMP) for Nursing Mothers Act was passed with overwhelming bipartisan support as an amendment to Congress’s fiscal year 2023 omnibus appropriations package, which is expected to pass both chambers of Congress and be signed […]

Warren, Underwood, Lawmakers Reintroduce Maternal Health Pandemic Response Act to Combat Maternal Mortality and Prepare for the Next Pandemic

Washington, D.C. — United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Representative Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) led Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) in reintroducing the Maternal Health Pandemic Response Act to improve research and data collection, safeguard the health of pregnant and postpartum individuals, and ensure that the COVID-19 pandemic does not exacerbate poor […]

Navigator Poll Shows Broad, Bipartisan Support for Maternal and Child Health in the Upcoming End of Year Package

November 30, 2022 – Passing the “Momnibus” Act is the #1 Issue for Voters in Upcoming End-of-Year Package with Majority Support from Independents and Republicans Washington DC — New Navigator polling reveals 72 percent of voters support passing the “Momnibus” legislation to reduce preventable deaths in moms. America has the highest maternal mortality rate of any industrialized country […]

COVID-19 contributed to a quarter of maternal deaths from 2020 to 2021, report finds

COVID-19 contributed to a quarter of all U.S. maternal deaths last year and in 2020, according to an oversight report. The report, released Wednesday morning by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan government auditing agency, details maternal mortality disparities during the pandemic and how the coronavirus contributed to overall maternal deaths. Out of last […]

Statement by HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra on Administration Action to Resolve “Family Glitch” and Lower Health Care Costs

(10/11/2022) Today, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra issued the following statement on the Biden-Harris Administration’s final rule to strengthen implementation of the Affordable Care Act by fixing the “family glitch,” a step that will help about 1 million Americans either gain coverage or see their coverage become more affordable. “Protecting and […]

Celebrating WTEP’s 8th annual #BumpDay – 20 July

This month, I am happy to spotlight the What to Expect Project (WTEP), a PMNCH member of the NGO constituency that is holding its 8th annual #BumpDay initiative on 20 July.  Every day, more than 800 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy or childbirth worldwide, and there are currently vast disparities in care based on […]