A recent Georgia study funded through the Warnock-championed Preventing Maternal Deaths Act found maternal mortality rates are increasing in Georgia, and 89% of deaths are preventable

Senator Reverend Warnock: “Too many mothers in Georgia are dying or suffering from declining health during and after childbirth. As a voice for mothers, children and families in Georgia I will keep working with my colleagues in the Senate to bring awareness to the importance of maternal health, and to strengthen maternal health outcomes so our mothers can live and thrive as they watch their children grow.”

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and eight Senate colleagues introduced a resolution designating January 23 as Maternal Health Awareness Day. The resolution emphasizes the importance of raising public awareness about maternal health and promotes initiatives to address and eliminate disparities in maternal health outcomes.

“Too many mothers in Georgia are dying or suffering from declining health during and after childbirth,” said Senator Warnock. “As a voice for mothers, children and families in Georgia I will keep working with my colleagues in the Senate to bring awareness to the importance of maternal health, and to strengthen maternal health outcomes so our mothers can live and thrive as they watch their children grow.”  

Numerous state entities, advocacy groups, community organizations, and others have united on January 23 to elevate awareness surrounding maternal health. This day serves as a platform to educate health care providers on maternal mortality, urging birthing individuals, families, and health care professionals to identify and discuss potential signs of emergencies.

The resolution notes that more than 50,000 individuals in the United States suffer from potentially life-threatening complications that arise from labor and childbirth, and recognizes community-based maternal health models that have been proven to improve the health of mothers throughout the country. With one-third of maternal mortality cases occurring between one week and one year postpartum, expanding access to health care after delivery nationwide is a vital step to saving the lives of birthing people.

Senator Reverend Warnock has been a steadfast champion of combatting maternal mortality, including introducing the bipartisan the Preventing Maternal Deaths Reauthorization Act of 2023 to support efforts to collect and analyze maternal health data and prevent maternal deaths, and the Kira Johnson Act to support bias training and data collection. The Senator also partnered with Senator Rubio to pass the Maternal Health Quality Improvement Act into law which authorized new grant programs to reduce maternal mortality and improve implicit bias training for providers. Additionally, the Senator continues to be a strong advocate for closing the Medicaid coverage gap in Georgia, so that more than 640,000 Georgians can access affordable health care. Expanding Medicaid would improve the maternal mortality rate, especially for Black women, according to the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute Center for Children and Families.

Alongside Senator Warnock, the resolution was authored by U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) and cosponsored by Senators Laphonza Butler (D-CA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).

The full text of the resolution can be found HERE.

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Title and affiliation are provided for identification purposes only. A pastor and social justice advocate, Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock was elected to the United States Senate in 2021 and reelected for a full term in 2022. The Senator serves on the Senate Agriculture, Banking, and Commerce committees, as well as the Senate Aging Committee.