LEGISLATIVE REPORT: SSAFER MOTHERHOOD, HEALTHIER KIDS

A few Sundays back we honored and celebrated our fathers. Contrary to the popular misconception, Father's Day was not established by greeting card companies to sell more cards. A "father's day" was first proposed in 1909 by Mrs. John B. Dodd who wanted to honor her father, William Smart. William Smart, a Civil War veteran, was widowed when his wife died in childbirth with their sixth child. Mr. Smart was left to raise the newborn and his other five children by himself on a rural farm in eastern Washington state. Mr. Smart's situation was not all that uncommon in those times.

In fact, at the turn of this century, more American women died in childbirth than from any other cause except for tuberculosis. As Americans, we are fortunate to live in the most medically advanced country in the world. Over the past 100 years, the development of health screenings, vaccines, therapies and treatments has helped us live longer, healthier lives. Life-threatening diseases such as tuberculosis have been almost completely eliminated in the United States. And with all of the medical advances being made in our country, it's easy to assume that pregnancy and childbirth are now safer for American women than it was 100 years ago. Unfortunately, this assumption is wrong.

The Centers of Disease Control (CDC) recently released a report that makes it clear that the promise of safe motherhood is still eluding too many women. In fact, during the past 15 years, total maternal deaths have not declined one bit in our nation. Think about it. Today, about one American out of 1,000 dies from tuberculosis each year. However, according to the CDC, two to three American women out of 10,000 lose their lives each day due to pregnancy-related conditions. In Missouri, seven women out of 100,000 die each year as a result of pregnancy and birth complications. And when you consider the fact that one out of four American women experience severe health complications during pregnancy, there is no doubt that more needs to be done in our nation to help more women have healthier and safer pregnancies.

Fortunately, women can improve their health and reduce their risk of complications during pregnancy and birth by getting early and consistent prenatal health care. But, for many women who live in poor, rural communities that lack basic health care services, access to prenatal care seems near impossible. Today in Missouri, about 15 percent of all expectant mothers receive no prenatal care. Most of these women are from families with very low incomes, have no health insurance, and simply fall through the cracks of our health care safety-net programs.

There are programs in rural America that strive to educate women about healthy pregnancies and childbirth and help them access prenatal care. For example, the "Whole Kids Outreach" Resource Mothers Program based in Ellington, Mo., trains experienced mothers in local communities as childbirth educators. These local moms then help establish circles of support for expectant and new mothers. Despite its modest size, "Whole Kids Outreach" has been of tremendous help to many mothers and infants in rural Missouri. But this program simply can't reach everyone in need of assistance in our rural communities. We must find ways to help all rural women have access to prenatal education and care.

I recently introduced legislation designed to protect the health of our nation's new and expectant mothers. The "Safe Motherhood Act" provides seed money for safer pregnancy programs such as Whole Kids Outreach, expands research on pregnancy risk factors, prevention strategies, and the roles of the family, health care providers and the community in safe motherhood, and promotes public education campaigns on healthy pregnancies. By broadening awareness and increasing access to prenatal care, we can help all women help themselves have healthier and safer pregnancies.

JoAnn Emerson represents the Eighth District in the U.S. House of Representatives.