March of Dimes Launches $75 Million, Five-Year Campaign to Raise Public Awareness, Reduce Rates of Preterm Birth and Increase Research to Find the Cause

Washington, D.C., Citing the dramatic rise in the number of babies born prematurely in this country, the March of Dimes today launched a $75 million, five-year national campaign.  The campaign’s goals will be to increase awareness of the growing problem and decrease the rate of premature birth. In 2001, more than 476,000 babies, or nearly 12 percent of live births, were born too soon -- before 37 completed weeks – in the U.S. 

“The annual rate of babies born prematurely has risen 27 percent since 1981, and this rate is unacceptably high,” says Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, March of Dimes president.  “Many of these babies come into the world with serious health problems.  Those who survive may suffer life-long consequences, from cerebral palsy and mental retardation to blindness.”

Prematurity has also been identified as the leading cause of neonatal death (within the first month of life) in the U.S. 

Also this morning at a press conference at the Capitol in Hartford, CT, the March of Dimes CT Chapter held a press conference to announce the campaign and speak to the rising problems of premature births in Connecticut.  In an average week in Connecticut, 84 babies are born preterm.  Overall, one of 10 babies in the state will be born too soon.  Between 1990-2000, the rate of infants born preterm in Connecticut increased nearly 15%.

Dr. Howse notes that most Americans today are unaware of the magnitude of this health problem. In a recent March of Dimes national survey of 1,967 adults, only 35 percent of respondents identified prematurity as “very serious” or “extremely serious.”  In the same survey, more than 50 percent believed the rate of preterm birth is declining or about the same.

The results of this survey are published in the February 2003 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.  The results of a similar survey of 605 pregnant women appear in the January 2003 issue of Contemporary OB/GYN.

“Prematurity is a common and serious problem,” says campaign honorary chair Dr. Louis W. Sullivan, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services.  “Women and their doctors need to address the known risks. Although African-American women are more likely to experience a premature birth, these births cut across all socio-economic and cultural barriers.  These babies come from every community.”

Dr. Sullivan also notes that prematurity imposes financial burdens on insurers, businesses and families.  In 2000, hospital charges for 23,000 prematurity-related infant stays totaled $1.2 billion.  The average charge was $58,000 per baby, compared to $4,300 for a typical newborn stay. ¹

The net cost of health care for treatment of preterm newborns covered by employer health plans has been estimated at $4.7 billion – equivalent to approximately two percent of corporate after-tax profits.²

The March of Dimes goals are to increase public awareness of the problem of prematurity from 35 to 60 percent, and to decrease the rate of preterm birth by at least 15 percent, to no more than 10.1 percent.  The 2001 rate is 11.9 percent.

If the rate in 2001 had been 10.1 percent, an estimated 73,000 babies would have been spared a premature birth.

The March of Dimes campaign will invest $75 million over the next five years and will raise new funds to support research into the causes and treatment of prematurity, says Dr. Howse.  The campaign will also advocate for an increase of $10 million annually in federally funded research into the causes of prematurity.

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to help launch a committee of dedicated professionals who will not only focus upon raising public awareness of the heavy toll on quality-of-life which premature birth visits upon its victims and families, but will also promote in-depth research into its causation and prevention,” said Dr. Ganson Purcell, Chair of the March of Dimes Connecticut Chapter Prematurity Campaign Committee, and Chairman/Director of the Dept. of OB-GYN at Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center.

“Our history, our track record and our mission to improve infant health uniquely qualify the March of Dimes to call the question,” says Dr. Howse.  “But this will be a tough campaign – more difficult than finding the vaccine for polio, and folic acid education.  We can’t do this alone, we need the support of the American public, health professionals, the corporate community, and federal and state government officials.

“We need to educate women about preterm labor, work with medical personnel to support risk detection, invest more federal and private research dollars and expand access to health care in order to find out why this is happening to our mothers and babies.  For thousands of families every year, the answers can’t come soon enough.”

Partnering with the March of Dimes in this effort are the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN).

Also joining the campaign are corporate sponsors CIGNA, FedEx and the Johnson & Johnson Pediatric Institute.  Media sponsors include Meredith Publishing’s American Baby Group and Working Mother Media.

In addition, more than 25 professional, consumer and government organizations across the U.S. will assist in communicating the March of Dimes educational messages.

The March of Dimes is a national voluntary health agency whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects and infant mortality.  Founded in 1938, the March of Dimes funds programs of research, community services, education and advocacy to save babies.  For more information, visit the March of Dimes Web site or its Spanish language Web site, or call 888-MODIMES.