[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 71 (Wednesday, April 13, 2022)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 22095-22096]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-08074]



[[Page 22093]]

Vol. 87

Wednesday,

No. 71

April 13, 2022

Part III





The President





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Proclamation 10365--Black Maternal Health Week, 2022



Proclamation 10366--Pan American Day and Pan American Week, 2022



Proclamation 10367--National Former Prisoner of War Recognition Day, 
2022
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  Federal Register / Vol. 87 , No. 71 / Wednesday, April 13, 2022 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 22095]]

                Proclamation 10365 of April 8, 2022

                
Black Maternal Health Week, 2022

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Pregnancy and childbirth should be a dignified, safe, 
                and joyful experience for all. For far too many 
                mothers, however, complications related to pregnancy, 
                childbirth, and postpartum can lead to devastating 
                health outcomes--including hundreds of deaths each 
                year. This maternal health crisis is particularly 
                devastating for Black women, who are more than three 
                times as likely to die from pregnancy-related 
                complications as white women, regardless of their 
                income or education. During Black Maternal Health Week, 
                we renew our commitment to addressing the crisis of 
                Black maternal mortality and morbidity across the 
                country.

                The Biden-Harris Administration remains fully committed 
                to ameliorating these unacceptable disparities and 
                building a health care system that is equitable and 
                safe for Black families. The inequities that Black 
                mothers face are not isolated incidents but, rather, 
                the byproduct of systemic racism in our society that 
                has festered for far too long. To root it out, and 
                improve health outcomes, we must address a broad range 
                of areas where unequal access persists along racial 
                lines--including access to health care, adequate 
                nutrition and housing, toxin-free environments, high-
                paying job sectors that provide paid leave, and 
                workplaces free from harassment and discrimination.

                That is why the American Rescue Plan gives States the 
                opportunity to provide 12 months of extended postpartum 
                coverage to pregnant people enrolled in Medicaid and 
                the Children's Health Insurance Program. It is also why 
                I signed the Protecting Moms Who Served Act--part of 
                the Black Maternal Health ``Momnibus'' Act that Vice 
                President Harris introduced in the Senate--to address 
                the maternal challenges that women veterans face. It is 
                why Vice President Harris hosted the first-ever White 
                House Maternal Day of Action Summit and announced a 
                nationwide call to action to reduce maternal mortality 
                and morbidity.

                To improve perinatal health outcomes and maternal 
                health equity, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 
                Services intends to propose the first-ever hospital 
                quality designation specifically focused on maternity 
                care. In addition, the Substance Abuse and Mental 
                Health Services Administration recently accepted 
                applications for the Services Grant Program for 
                Residential Treatment for Pregnant and Postpartum 
                Women--a program that provides pregnant and postpartum 
                women and their children with comprehensive substance 
                use treatment and recovery support services across 
                residential and outpatient settings. This year, the 
                program will also extend services to fathers, partners, 
                and other family members.

                In the year ahead, we must build on this work by 
                further expanding access to maternal care, lowering 
                health care costs, and making new investments to drive 
                down mortality and improve maternal health. We are 
                going to expand and diversify the maternal health 
                workforce, improve maternal mental health treatment, 
                bolster community-based programs, train providers, 
                enhance research, and ensure that maternal care is 
                better coordinated. This is more than just the right 
                thing to do--it is also a strategic imperative that 
                makes all of us healthier and all of us stronger. When 
                women--regardless of race--do not receive the health 
                care they need and deserve, it threatens

[[Page 22096]]

                the strength and stability of our families, our 
                communities, and our entire Nation.

                It is on all of us to ensure that no person's race ever 
                determines their health outcomes and that every person 
                preparing to give birth is treated with dignity, 
                safety, and respect in our health care system. During 
                Black Maternal Health Week, we refocus on that effort 
                and celebrate America's extraordinary maternal health 
                care workforce--including doulas and midwives, who 
                offer crucial support for our Nation's mothers 
                throughout pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum and 
                whose work is essential to the health and well-being of 
                all of our mothers and children.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 11 
                through April 17, 2022, as Black Maternal Health Week. 
                I call upon all Americans to raise awareness of the 
                state of Black maternal health in the United States by 
                understanding the consequences of systemic 
                discrimination, recognizing the scope of this problem 
                and the need for urgent solutions, amplifying the 
                voices and experiences of Black women, families, and 
                communities, and committing to building a world in 
                which Black women do not have to fear for their safety, 
                their well-being, their dignity, or their lives before, 
                during, and after pregnancy.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                eighth day of April, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty-two, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                sixth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2022-08074
Filed 4-12-22; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3395-F2-P