[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 67 (Wednesday, April 17, 2024)]
[House]
[Page H2485]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       BLACK MATERNAL HEALTH WEEK

  (Ms. McCLELLAN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. McCLELLAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise, as we close out Black Maternal 
Health Week, to underscore the pressing need to continue addressing the 
maternal mortality crisis that plagues our Nation.
  The United States has the highest maternal mortality rate of any 
high-income nation in the world, and Black women bear the brunt of 
these disparities and are three times more likely to die in childbirth 
than White women.
  This crisis has been made worse by the overturning of Roe v. Wade, as 
the States with abortion bans have higher mortality rates than those 
that do not.
  I know the risks that Black women face all too well as I nearly died 
giving birth to my daughter, Samantha, when she was born 9 weeks 
prematurely and spent 6 weeks in the NICU.
  As a member of the Black Maternal Health Caucus, I am encouraged by 
some of the progress that we have made, such as the Biden-Harris 
administration's Blueprint for Addressing the Maternal Health Crisis; 
allowing States to expand Medicaid postpartum coverage from just 60 
days to 12 months postpartum, impacting approximately 65 percent of 
births for Black mothers; and adopting new regulations under the 
Pregnant Worker Fairness Act that gives millions of workers access to 
unpaid leave. We must do more, including passing the Momnibus Act.

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