Yesterday it was reported that the Kasich administration was initiating a push to raise awareness about Ohio’s alarmingly high infant mortality rate. Ohio has the third-worst infant mortality rate in the United States and that rate is going up while the national average is declining. Today, nearly 8 in 1000 Ohio babies die in the first year of life – and the number is significantly higher among African-American babies. However, we also learned yesterday that the Kasich administration has no plans to promote awareness of benefits available under the new national healthcare law that could make treatment available to more women and children. As a result, nonprofit groups will be left to get the word out about benefits. West Virginia plans to spend 18 times as much per capita on outreach. A major cause of infant mortality is prematurity, and preventive care during pregnancy can significantly reduce that risk. Obamacare covers 100% of the cost preventive care, such as gestational diabetes screening, eliminating costly co-pays as a barrier to women trying to have a healthy pregnancy.
Posted on: Thu, 25 Jul 2013 16:35:42 +0000
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