Chicago, IL-Closing the Gap is a collaborative project brought together by the Illinois Department of Human Services along with the March of Dimes, Sudden Infant Death Services of Illinois and the Illinois Maternal & Child Health Coalition. The project’s main goal is to improve infant health by reducing racial/ethnic disparities in preterm birth and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome – two of the main causes of infant mortality. Community education and outreach efforts are being focused on the communities of Austin, Auburn Gresham, Englewood and West Englewood.

More than 500 ads featuring Grammy Award Winning recording artist, Common, will run on Chicago CTA buses and trains throughout the months of March and April with the theme "Saving Our Babies, Saving Our Future".  This campaign reinforces two of the primary risk reduction messages for preterm birth and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: 1).Women should seek prenatal care as soon as they think they might be pregnant and maintain regular prenatal visits throughout pregnancy. 2). All babies should be placed on their backs to sleep in a safe crib.

The infant mortality rate (the number of babies who die in the first year of life) is highest among African Americans compared to all other racial and ethnic groups.  Of all infant deaths in Chicago between 2000-2002, 61.4% were African American, 24.8% were Hispanic, 10.7% were White, and 3% were Asian.  In Austin and Englewood, two of the communities targeted by this project, 1 out of every 6 babies dies before their first birthday.

The March of Dimes along with the other organizations involved in the campaign are partnering with the city of Chicago's 311 call center (the contact number featured in the ad) to connect women and families with local health clinics and service providers in their area.

A press conference to announce the launch of this campaign was held on February 27 at the Westside Health Authority in the Austin neighborhood at which Common and representatives from the partnering organizations spoke about the high rate of infant death among African Americans and how Closing the Gap seeks to address this problem through peer education and community outreach.

Closing the Gap is supported by funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration.  Illinois was one of four states selected in 2004 to receive federal funding to address disparities in infant mortality rates.

The March of Dimes is a national voluntary health agency whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. Founded in 1938, the March of Dimes funds programs of research, community services, education, and advocacy to save babies and in 2003 launched a campaign to address the increasing rate of premature birth. For more information, visit the March of Dimes Web site at marchofdimes.com or its Spanish language Web site at nacersano.org.  For more information about Closing the Gap or this campaign, please contact Kathy O'Connell at (312) 596-4715.