Murphy signs law to create maternal and infant health authority
A major policy initiative spearheaded by First Lady Tammy Murphy to reduce maternal and infant mortality — an issue that disproportionately affects Black mothers — took its 44th step forward today with the signing of legislation creating a new authority to manage the New Jersey Maternal and Infant Health Innovation Center in Trenton.
The new law signed by Gov. Phil Murphy establishes the 15-member New Jersey Maternal and Infant Health Innovation Authority to manage the Trenton-based research and development incubator program to provide prenatal and postpartum care for mothers.
The First Lady said the new center “will offer comprehensive clinical services to serve moms before, during, and after pregnancy” to make New Jersey a national model for maternal and infant help.
“We all feel an instinctive need to protect our mothers and babies so that every family begins its life together in health, wellness and joy,” said Tammy Murphy. “I am grateful and enormously proud to see New Jersey commit to leading this effort for generations to come through the work of this center.”
New Jersey ranked 47th in the nation for maternal and infant mortality when Murphy took office in 2018 but last month, America’s Health Ranking moved up to 29th. The March of Dimes Annual Report Card found that maternal health in 47 states declined in the last year, but New Jersey, along with Kansas, Montana, and North Dakota, improved.
“In New Jersey, over 90% of maternal deaths are preventable, Tammy Murphy said.
The governor said the new center will both drive policy and provide badly-needed maternal health care services in Trenton, which currently does not have a birthing center and suffers from some of the widest racial disparities in maternal and infant deaths.”
“Today marks another important step in our ongoing efforts to protect the health of mothers and newborn,” Murphy said.
State Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Lawrence), a bill sponsor, said Trenton has one of the highest Black and Hispanic infant mortality rates in the state, with only 47% of the city’s mothers receiving prenatal care in their first trimester.
“There has to be a greater emphasis on the maternal health of women of color, and the establishment of this center is a significant step in increasing access to efficient and effective maternal health care,” said Turner.
Another bill sponsor, Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson, called the racial disparities unacceptable.
“We must do more for equity in health care, dismantle structural barriers and ensure we are equipping our residents with the high-quality services they need to thrive,” she said. “A Maternal and Infant Health Authority will build on our work to make New Jersey the safest place to start and raise a family by directly supporting research, development and innovation that will improve outcomes for new mothers and their babies.”
Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora praised the work of the governor and first lady to enhance maternal care.
“We are going to make great outcomes for Moms,” he said.
