I am writing to encourage you to support the Maternal and Child Health Stillbirth Prevention Act in the 118th Congress. This bipartisan and vitally important bill would add stillbirth and stillbirth prevention to Title V of the Social Security Act — something that has been lacking since the introduction of Title V funding back in 1935. Title V currently leaves off stillbirth from the most important piece of maternal health legislation in our country. Every year, 44,000 expectant parents endure the tragedy of stillbirth, according to the CDC. The annual number of stillbirths far exceeds the number of deaths among children aged 0-14 years from preterm birth, SIDS, accidents, drownings, guns, fire, and flu combined. Racial disparities persist, with 1 out of every 97 Black pregnancies ending in stillbirth. Pacific Islander and Indigenous women are also at greater risk enduring stillbirth. The legislation recognizes that stillbirth (defined as the loss of a baby at 20 weeks or greater during pregnancy), and the disparity in those impacted by stillbirth, requires further research, support, and prevention programming. It also calls for evidence-based programs and activities and outcome research to reduce the incidence of stillbirth including tracking and awareness of fetal movements, improvement of birth timing for pregnant people with risk factors, initiatives that encourage safe sleeping positions for pregnant people, screening and surveillance for fetal growth restriction, efforts to achieve smoking cessation amongst pregnant people, community-based programs that provide home visits or other types of support, and any other research or evidence-based programming to prevent stillbirths. In the 117th Congress, the following organizations endorsed the bipartisan bill: American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs (AMCHP), Black Mamas Matter Alliance, Every Mother Counts, Healthy Birth Day, Inc., March of Dimes, Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance, 1st Breath, 2020 Mom, Measure the Placenta, Mom Congress, Moms Rising Together, PUSH for Empowered Pregnancy, Reproductive and Placental Research Unit-Yale School of Medicine, Return to Zero: HOPE, and Star Legacy Foundation. We would be so grateful for your support --- we hope you to sign on as a co-sponsor to this important legislation when it is introduced.

It is unacceptable that 44,000 expectant parents will lose their baby to stillbirth this year. Currently, the annual number of stillbirths far exceeds the number of deaths among children aged 0-14 years from preterm birth, SIDS, accidents, drownings, guns, fire, and flu combined. Without your help this silent crisis is only going to get worse. The Maternal and Child Health Stillbirth Prevention Act is a critical piece of legislation that would add stillbirth and stillbirth prevention to Title V of the Social Security Act — something that has been lacking since the introduction of Title V funding back in 1935. I encourage you to please support this bill. The legislation recognizes that stillbirth (defined as the loss of a baby at 20 weeks or greater during pregnancy), and the disparity in those impacted by stillbirth, requires further research, support, and prevention programming. It also calls for evidence-based programs and activities and outcome research to reduce the incidence of stillbirth including tracking and awareness of fetal movements, improvement of birth timing for pregnant people with risk factors, initiatives that encourage safe sleeping positions for pregnant people, screening and surveillance for fetal growth restriction, efforts to achieve smoking cessation amongst pregnant people, community-based programs that provide home visits or other types of support, and any other research or evidence-based programming to prevent stillbirths. We would be so grateful for your support --- we encourage you to sign on as a co-sponsor as soon as this legislation is introduced.