Panel to tackle high maternal mortality rate

A House study committee co-chaired by Augusta state Rep. Mark Newton will examine data and best practices to improve Georgia’s ranking among the nation's worst for women dying during pregnancy or childbirth.

Newton, an emergency medicine physician and GOP caucus chief deputy whip, sponsored the original bill creating the committee. He and Rep. Sharon Cooper, R-Marietta, were named co-chairs of the committee last week by House Speaker David Ralston.

Georgia’s maternal mortality rate has increased since 2012, and a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report said an average of 46.2 women died during pregnancy or childbirth each year from 2011 to 2015. The national average is 17.2.

The committee’s first move when it convenes in early August will be to compile data, Newton said, and look at how other states tackle the problem.

“We need to pull the data together and we need to find out what actions we need to take,” he said. “We’ve got to look at some innovative solutions, and that’s one of the provisions of the study committee.”

California, which has the lowest maternal mortality rate in the U.S., identified the two pregnancy complications – hemorrhage and pregnancy-induced high blood pressure – that a mother can survive if treated properly. The state implemented protocols for early recognition and well-rehearsed drills for treating them.

The World Health Organization says preventing maternal deaths requires all women, including teens, to have access to contraception, safe abortion services and safe post-abortion care. Opponents of stricter abortion laws argue that banning abortion could increase maternal mortality rates. Georgia’s “heartbeat” bill, which bans abortion after six weeks, goes into effect in January.

Newton said the committee will attempt to pull together all the state’s resources, including research being done at Mercer, Morehouse and Augusta universities. Ralston named AU professor Chad Ray, who currently serves on the Georgia Maternal Mortality Review Committee, as a citizen member of the study committee.

The bill abolishes the committee Dec. 1, and Ralston said in a statement that he looks forward to considering the committee’s findings and recommendations during the 2020 legislative session.