March 29, 2024

Black Maternal Health Care Issues Topic of Hoyer Roundtable

Maternal Health Care
Congressman Hoyer Facebook photo

At a roundtable discussion on the importance of improving maternal health care for African-American mothers and their children, Congressman Steny H. Hoyer heard from stakeholders from throughout the Fifth District about disparities in maternal health care and how communities can work together to improve outcomes.

The event was held earlier this month at the Charles County Department of Health in White Plains.

The Black Maternal Health Caucus launched in April 2019, and is led by Congresswoman Alma Adams of North Carolina and Congresswoman Lauren Underwood of Illinois. In July, the caucus held a Stakeholder Summit on Capitol Hill to hear insights and recommendations for the caucus, which Congressman Hoyer participated in. Mr. Hoyer is a founding member of the Black Maternal Health Caucus.

“I thank community stakeholders for meeting with me [Oct. 8] in White Plains to discuss how we can work together to reduce disparities in maternal health care,” said Congressman Hoyer (D-MD). “African-American mothers in Prince George’s County and throughout Maryland face significant health care challenges, and it is unacceptable that African-American women are nearly four times as likely to die from preventable pregnancy-related complications. We must do more to ensure no woman has to worry about access to quality pre-natal and post-natal care.”

Congressman Hoyer said the Fifth District is fortunate to have community leaders working hard to address this important issue.

“I am grateful for their dedication to expanding access to care,” Congressman Hoyer said. “As a founding member of the Black Maternal Health Caucus, I will continue to work with members of the caucus and local officials to end disparities in health care and ensure that all women in the Fifth District receive the same high-quality health care.”

“I commend Leader Hoyer for hosting this Black Maternal Health Care roundtable, and for being a steadfast partner in the fight to eradicate racial health disparities. It is only through collective efforts on the local, state, and federal levels that we can better ensure Black women and infants have the rights, respect and resources they need to not only survive, but to ultimately thrive,” Congresswoman Adams said.  “It is deeply disturbing that here in America, one of the wealthiest countries in the world, black women continue to experience unacceptably poor maternal health outcomes. We are facing a public health crisis that has reached epidemic proportions. As the co-founder and co-chair of the Black Maternal Health Caucus, along with Congresswoman Lauren Underwood, I remain committed to working with my colleagues to elevate the national discourse and identify evidence-based solutions that address this crisis.”

“I am grateful to Congressman Hoyer for hosting such a critically important roundtable discussion on black maternal health. We need to continue to have a robust national conversation about the causes of our nation’s unacceptably high maternal mortality rate, as well as solutions to save lives and end racial disparities. Congressman Hoyer has been a consistent champion of this issue as a founding member of the Black Maternal Health Caucus and I look forward to continuing to work with him to address this urgent crisis,” Congresswoman Underwood said.

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For more information about House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer, visit his Leader member page.

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