Baker Institute expert available to comment on landmark maternal health act

EXPERT ALERT

David Ruth
713-348-6327
david@rice.edu

Jeff Falk
713-348-6775
jfalk@rice.edu

Baker Institute expert available to comment on landmark maternal health act

HOUSTON – (Dec. 19, 2018) – The House and Senate last week passed a bill that would increase federal efforts to study and prevent maternal mortality. The bill, the Preventing Maternal Deaths Act of 2018, would authorize $58 million per year for the next 4 years to be spent on surveillance, data collection, further research and prevention.

Credit: 123RF.com/Rice University

“This act is a critical step towards identifying and addressing the root causes of high maternal mortality in the United States,” said Quianta Moore, fellow in child health policy at the Baker Institute. She is available for interviews about the bill and its implications both nationally and in Texas. The state has made national headlines in recent years for its maternal mortality rates.

If signed by the president, the legislation’s passage would also authorize such activities as expanding Centers for Disease Control and Prevention research to include reducing disparities in maternal care, and making changes to prevention activities to emphasize maternal mental health and substance-use disorders.

Moore’s research focuses on developing empirically informed policies to advance the health of children. She uses mixed methodologies, including community-based participatory research and surveys, to gain insight into the health needs of communities and to develop data-driven, tailored health policy recommendations. Moreover, she helps funders and community stakeholders develop strategies to support an equitable future for children and their communities.

-30-

For more information or to schedule an interview with Moore, contact Jeff Falk, associate director of national media relations at Rice, at jfalk@rice.edu or 713-348-6775. The Baker Institute has a radio and television studio available for media.

Related materials:

Moore bio: www.bakerinstitute.org/experts/quianta-moore

Follow the Baker Institute via Twitter @BakerInstitute.

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews.

Founded in 1993, Rice University’s Baker Institute ranks among the top three university-affiliated think tanks in the world. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute conducts research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows, Rice University faculty scholars and staff, coupled with its outreach to the Rice student body through fellow-taught classes — including a public policy course — and student leadership and internship programs. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blogs.chron.com/bakerblog.