CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20212022 REGULAR SESSION House Resolution No. 11Introduced by Assembly Member Bauer-KahanJanuary 19, 2021 Relative to Maternal Health Awareness Day. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTHR 11, as introduced, Bauer-Kahan. Digest KeyBill TextWHEREAS, The United States ranks highest among industrialized nations in maternal mortality; andWHEREAS, Nationally, maternal mortality rates are rising, and significant and widening disparities persist with black women, who are three-to-four times more likely than white women to die during pregnancy and the postpartum period; andWHEREAS, More than 700 women die each year in the United States as a result of pregnancy or delivery complications, and over half of these deaths are preventable; andWHEREAS, While the national maternal mortality rate continues to rise, California has worked diligently and successfully to reverse the alarming trend; andWHEREAS, The California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative (CMQCC), a multistakeholder organization committed to ending preventable morbidity, mortality, and racial disparities in California maternity care, was founded in 2006 at Stanford University School of Medicine, in coordination with the California Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review (CA-PAMR) and the Public Health Institute, in response to rising maternal mortality and morbidity rates; andWHEREAS, The CMQCC uses research, quality improvement toolkits, statewide outreach collaboratives, and its innovative Maternal Data Center to improve health outcomes for mothers and infants; andWHEREAS, Since the inception of the CMQCC and CA-PAMR, California has recorded a maternal mortality decline by 55 percent from 2006 to 2013, inclusive, and has successfully decreased the maternal mortality rate to seven deaths per 100,000 live births; andWHEREAS, CA-PAMR reported that, from 1999 to 2016, inclusive, suicide rates among women of reproductive age (1549 years of age) in California remained consistently lower and stable over time while national suicide rates were higher and have continued to rise; andWHEREAS, A womans maternal mental health condition can also be a factor in maternal mortality. Recent efforts have been made to bring greater awareness to maternal mental health and to ensure more women are screened and treated for postpartum depression or psychosis and that many of those women remain covered by health insurance upon diagnosis; andWHEREAS, Improved screening alone can reduce the severity of postpartum depression. Obstetric providers are implementing more aggressive screening techniques and making strides to further recognize and therefore treat maternal mental health conditions; andWHEREAS, While California has set an example for the rest of the country and continues to lead in preventing maternal deaths, there is still more work to be done; andWHEREAS, The State Department of Public Health must continue its surveillance to bring heightened awareness to maternal health; andWHEREAS, California must maintain its efforts to maximize health prior to pregnancy, including, but not limited to, prevent smoking, improve fitness, reduce sexually transmitted diseases, and promote positive relationships; andWHEREAS, California must continue to address the postpartum needs of women through such efforts as postpartum visits and interconception care, breastfeeding support, and screening for postpartum depression; andWHEREAS, California should continue to promote positive birth outcomes for all women through such actions as maternity care quality improvement, home visiting for vulnerable pregnant women, and providing additional support for black women, and to further increase culturally and linguistically relevant public awareness about maternal mental health risk factors, signs, symptoms, treatment, and recovery; andWHEREAS, California should maintain its efforts to improve the coordination of care between obstetrics and psychiatry regarding mental health treatment, as needed, and to continue advancements for improved screening for mental health conditions during and after pregnancy, as well as screening for substance use, adverse childhood experiences, medical diagnoses, including, infectious disease, and intimate partner violence; andWHEREAS, The Legislature seeks to bring awareness to maternal health and continue its work to provide positive outcomes for both the mother and the infant; now, therefore, be itResolved by the Assembly of the State of California, That the Assembly proclaims January 23, 2021, as Maternal Health Awareness Day, to draw attention to the efforts that have improved maternal health in California and to highlight the need for continued improvement of maternal health for all women; and be it furtherResolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution .
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20212022 REGULAR SESSION House Resolution No. 11Introduced by Assembly Member Bauer-KahanJanuary 19, 2021 Relative to Maternal Health Awareness Day. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTHR 11, as introduced, Bauer-Kahan. Digest Key
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20212022 REGULAR SESSION
House Resolution
No. 11
Introduced by Assembly Member Bauer-KahanJanuary 19, 2021
Introduced by Assembly Member Bauer-Kahan
January 19, 2021
Relative to Maternal Health Awareness Day.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
## LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
HR 11, as introduced, Bauer-Kahan.
## Digest Key
## Bill Text
WHEREAS, The United States ranks highest among industrialized nations in maternal mortality; and
WHEREAS, Nationally, maternal mortality rates are rising, and significant and widening disparities persist with black women, who are three-to-four times more likely than white women to die during pregnancy and the postpartum period; and
WHEREAS, More than 700 women die each year in the United States as a result of pregnancy or delivery complications, and over half of these deaths are preventable; and
WHEREAS, While the national maternal mortality rate continues to rise, California has worked diligently and successfully to reverse the alarming trend; and
WHEREAS, The California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative (CMQCC), a multistakeholder organization committed to ending preventable morbidity, mortality, and racial disparities in California maternity care, was founded in 2006 at Stanford University School of Medicine, in coordination with the California Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review (CA-PAMR) and the Public Health Institute, in response to rising maternal mortality and morbidity rates; and
WHEREAS, The CMQCC uses research, quality improvement toolkits, statewide outreach collaboratives, and its innovative Maternal Data Center to improve health outcomes for mothers and infants; and
WHEREAS, Since the inception of the CMQCC and CA-PAMR, California has recorded a maternal mortality decline by 55 percent from 2006 to 2013, inclusive, and has successfully decreased the maternal mortality rate to seven deaths per 100,000 live births; and
WHEREAS, CA-PAMR reported that, from 1999 to 2016, inclusive, suicide rates among women of reproductive age (1549 years of age) in California remained consistently lower and stable over time while national suicide rates were higher and have continued to rise; and
WHEREAS, A womans maternal mental health condition can also be a factor in maternal mortality. Recent efforts have been made to bring greater awareness to maternal mental health and to ensure more women are screened and treated for postpartum depression or psychosis and that many of those women remain covered by health insurance upon diagnosis; and
WHEREAS, Improved screening alone can reduce the severity of postpartum depression. Obstetric providers are implementing more aggressive screening techniques and making strides to further recognize and therefore treat maternal mental health conditions; and
WHEREAS, While California has set an example for the rest of the country and continues to lead in preventing maternal deaths, there is still more work to be done; and
WHEREAS, The State Department of Public Health must continue its surveillance to bring heightened awareness to maternal health; and
WHEREAS, California must maintain its efforts to maximize health prior to pregnancy, including, but not limited to, prevent smoking, improve fitness, reduce sexually transmitted diseases, and promote positive relationships; and
WHEREAS, California must continue to address the postpartum needs of women through such efforts as postpartum visits and interconception care, breastfeeding support, and screening for postpartum depression; and
WHEREAS, California should continue to promote positive birth outcomes for all women through such actions as maternity care quality improvement, home visiting for vulnerable pregnant women, and providing additional support for black women, and to further increase culturally and linguistically relevant public awareness about maternal mental health risk factors, signs, symptoms, treatment, and recovery; and
WHEREAS, California should maintain its efforts to improve the coordination of care between obstetrics and psychiatry regarding mental health treatment, as needed, and to continue advancements for improved screening for mental health conditions during and after pregnancy, as well as screening for substance use, adverse childhood experiences, medical diagnoses, including, infectious disease, and intimate partner violence; and
WHEREAS, The Legislature seeks to bring awareness to maternal health and continue its work to provide positive outcomes for both the mother and the infant; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, That the Assembly proclaims January 23, 2021, as Maternal Health Awareness Day, to draw attention to the efforts that have improved maternal health in California and to highlight the need for continued improvement of maternal health for all women; and be it further
Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution .