>> Pregnancy in the early weeks
of parenthood can be a difficult
and stressful time.
Getting access to mental health
care can be an additional
challenge area Allie Rogan tells
us what the federal government
is doing to help.
>> There are grim statistics
surrounding American motherhood.
U.S. Maternal mortality rate
continues to increase.
2021 was one of the worst years
on record.
U.S. Maternal deaths far exceed
that of many developed
countries.
According to the CDC, one of the
leading causes of
pregnancy-related death is
mental health conditions.
Including those who lead to
death by suicide.
Last year, the U.S. Launched the
national maternal health
hotline.
A 24/7 resource wen Yu and
expectant people can talk to
counselors.
It received thousands of calls
in its first years.
I'm joined by Carol Johnson, an
agency of the department of
health and human services.
Thanks for joining us.
>> Thank you for having me and
calling attention to the issue.
It is a critical need across the
country.
In addition to hearing the
volume of calls we received, we
also get incredible feedback
from stakeholders.
Clinicians, community-based
organizations that work with
pregnant moms about how
important it is to have a
resource like this, a safe space
for pregnant moms and new moms
to have a conversation with a
counselor and get their concerns
heard.
>> About a quarter of urgency
related deaths are related to
mental health, which is
extremely important.
The national hotline seems like
a very well applied solution to
help address that problem.
If you look at the numbers of
plurality appear to be related
to physical ailments, including
hemorrhage, heart complications,
infection.
Are those types of root causes
harder to treat on a national
level?
>> The maternal mental health
hotline is part of an arson up
-- our national strategy to
tackle the crisis.
We are investing not only in
this critical resource,
arbitrary or mental health
hotline, but also improving the
way care is delivered in terms
of improving access to prenatal
care, postnatal care.
Too often, new moms are dropped
off at medicaid quickly after
delivering.
We are making sure states expand
access to medicaid.
We are doing better data
collection.
We are building the workforce,
more certified nurse midwives,
to make sure the health care
system is centered around
hearing women's voices and
concerns.
We know that will make a
meaningful different in this
work.
>> You recently announced a 65
million award package to health
centers across the country to
address the maternal mortality
crisis.
Is what you mentioned part of
the package of services you
intend to bolster?
>> It is.
We, 1400 health centers around
the country, we see patients
regardless of their ability to
pay.
Health centers are in
underserved communities, rural
communities.
Our investment is about helping
health centers meet the needs of
pregnant women and postpartum
women in their communities.
Including expanding access to
mental health services,
integrating mental health
services into ob services,
focused on getting community
health workers who can be the
link and support to connect
pregnant women to social
services, that being part of the
solution.
>> The rate of maternal
mortality varies greatly on
racial lines.
Black and indigenous women are
two to three times more likely
to die of pregnancy-related
causes than white women.
Why this disparity?
>> There are unacceptable
disparities.
That is why the administration
launched a blueprint for
maternal health.
It is led by the commitment of
the president and the vice
president to address those
disparities.
The vice president has been a
leader since she was in the
senate.
She has called us together to
tackle this issue.
I got to participate in her
convening the first cabinet
meeting around maternal mental
health, which put us around the
table with our colleagues from
the department of labor,
housing, and recognizing
transportation, all of these
issues are part of the solution.
>> When you desegregate the CDC
data, mental health issues are
the underlying cause of most of
the deaths for white and
hispanic mothers, but black and
Asian mothers suffered much more
from her conditions and
hemorrhaging.
Is it harder to address these
challenges when the root causes
very so much by race?
>> That is why we have to invest
in all of the above.
We are also investing in helping
hospitals prepare for hemorrhage
and helping them be ready to
respond to those crisis moments.
And moving further upstream and
better managing hypertension and
gestational diabetes in women
during the prenatal period,
which is why it is important to
get people connected to prenatal
care.
We hope these efforts will help
us address critical disparities.
>> Carol Johnson, head of the
health and resources
administration, thank you for
your time.