A lack of adequate prenatal care is a major cause of underweight babies. And when born underweight, infants are more likely to die within the first year of life. Sen. Sherrod Brown says these basic facts are all too common in his home state.
"We know Ohio is about as bad as it gets when it comes to infant mortality. We rank 48th in the nation overall," Brown says. "One way we can combat this problem is to make sure mothers and mothers to be get the care they need."
Brown introduced a bi-partisan bill requiring a federal agency to identify areas that need more obstetrician-gynecologists or midwives. The hope, he says, is to find the gaps in access and make sure mothers-to-be get the care they need to deliver a healthy baby.
The proposal was announced on the same day the national nonprofit Robert Wood Johnson Foundationreleased its sixth annual county health rankings, which detailed health statistics. The report shows Cuyahoga County has one of the highest percentages of low birth weight babies in the state.