[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 83 (Friday, May 17, 2019)]
[House]
[Page H3929]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    BLACK MOTHERS SUFFER IN SILENCE

  (Mrs. McBATH asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. McBATH. Madam Speaker, Black women are three to four times more 
likely to die from pregnancy-related complications, and this disparity 
persists across socioeconomic and educational levels.
  I recently heard the story of a constituent in my district. Her name 
is Phiffer. After a failed emergency surgery, she was confined to 
bedrest 20 weeks into her pregnancy, but her doctor failed to address 
her mental health.
  At 30 weeks, she gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. But for a year 
after, she struggled with mental health.
  She said: ``I know my story is unremarkable.''
  Unremarkable. Unremarkable because mothers are suffering in silence. 
Black mothers are suffering in silence daily.
  I am proud to be a founding member of the Black Maternal Health 
Caucus because we need to address this crisis. I look forward to 
working with my colleagues to make sure that women like Phiffer receive 
the proper care that they need and deserve.

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