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More than a half million babies are born prematurely each year—that’s one in eight babies. More newborns die from premature birth than any other cause. This is the number one health problem for babies in the U.S. and in our state. It’s time for our country to do more to help moms have healthy, full-term babies.
November is when the March of Dimes focuses the nation’s attention each year on the impact premature birth has on babies and families and on the opportunities for prevention. November is Prematurity Awareness Month and November 12th is Prematurity Awareness Day. The goal is to get the crisis of premature birth on the nation’s health care agenda.
In our country today, more newborns die from premature birth than any other cause. One in eight babies is born prematurely and millions of children face serious health challenges because they were born too soon. Together, we can find the causes of premature birth. Solutions are within our grasp.
The March of Dimes urges everyone to sign the 2008 Petition for Preemies, which is online at marchofdimescom/petition. The petition calls on federal and state officials, health care professionals and business leaders to take action and help more babies be born healthy and full-term.
The March of Dimes Petition for Preemies calls for action on four key items: 1) federal support for more research; 2) expanded access to healthcare coverage that includes smoking cessation programs; 3) voluntary review of c-sections and inductions to ensure that professional guidelines are followed, and; 4) workplaces that support maternal and infant health.
On November 12th, the sixth annual Prematurity Awareness Day, the March of Dimes will be issuing a Report Card on Premature Birth, giving the nation and each state a letter grade determined by comparing its preterm birth rate to national Healthy People 2010 goals. |
