II 109th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3529 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES June 15, 2006 Mr. Menendez (for himself and Mr. Durbin) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To ensure that new mothers and their families are educated about postpartum depression, screened for symptoms, and provided with essential services, and to increase research at the National Institutes of Health on postpartum depression.

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Short title

This Act may be cited as the Mom's Opportunity to Access Health, Education, Research, and Support for Postpartum Depression Act or the MOTHERS Act.

2.

Findings

The Congress finds as follows: (1)Postpartum depression is a devastating mood disorder which strikes many women during and after pregnancy. (2)Postpartum mood changes are common and can be broken into three subgroups: baby blues, which is an extremely common and the less severe form of postpartum depression; postpartum mood and anxiety disorders, which are more severe than baby blues and can occur during pregnancy and anytime within the first year of the infant’s birth; and postpartum psychosis, which is the most extreme form of postpartum depression and can occur during pregnancy and up to twelve months after delivery. (3)Baby blues is characterized by mood swings, feelings of being overwhelmed, tearfulness, irritability, poor sleep, mood changes, and a sense of vulnerability that usually starts in the first week and resolves without treatment by the end of the second week postpartum. (4)The symptoms of postpartum mood and anxiety disorders are as defined in the latest edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), as published by American Psychological Association. (5)The symptoms of postpartum psychosis include losing touch with reality, distorted thinking, delusions, auditory hallucinations, paranoia, hyperactivity, and rapid speech or mania. (6)Baby blues afflicts up to 80 percent of new mothers, postpartum depression occurs in 10 to 20 percent of new mothers, and postpartum psychosis strikes 1 in 1,000 new mothers. (7)The causes of postpartum depression are complex and unknown at this time; however, contributing factors include: a steep and rapid drop in hormone levels after childbirth; difficulty during labor or pregnancy; a premature birth; a miscarriage; feeling overwhelmed, uncertain, frustrated or anxious about one’s new role as a mother; a lack of support from one’s spouse, friends or family; marital strife; stressful events in life such as death of a loved one, financial problems, or physical or mental abuse; a family history of depression or mood disorders; a previous history of major depression or anxiety; or a prior postpartum depression. (8)Postpartum depression is a treatable disorder if promptly diagnosed by a trained provider and attended to with a personalized regimen of care including social support, therapy, medication, and when necessary hospitalization. (9)All too often postpartum depression goes undiagnosed or untreated due to the social stigma surrounding depression and mental illness, the romanticization of motherhood, the new mother’s inability to self-diagnose her condition, the new mother’s shame or embarrassment over discussing her depression so near to the birth of her child, the lack of understanding in society and the medical community of the complexity of postpartum depression, and economic pressures placed on hospitals and providers. (10)Untreated, postpartum depression can lead to further depression, substance abuse, loss of employment, divorce and further social alienation, self-destructive behavior, or even suicide. (11)Untreated, postpartum depression impacts society through its effect on the infant’s physical and psychological and cognitive development, child abuse, neglect or death of the infant or other siblings, and the disruption of the family. (12)This Act shares the goals of the Melanie Blocker-Stokes Postpartum Depression Research and Care Act and will help new mothers who are battling with postpartum conditions.