December 8 th
, 2011
Ms. Jennifer Schmaler
10 Fox Run
Woodbury, CT 06798
Congressman Chris Murphy
114 West Main St., Suite 2206
New Britain, CT 06051
Dear Congressman Murphy,
In a country divided by the business aspect and human rights aspect of healthcare, there are specific groups that are suffering. One important group is pregnant future mothers. In the bill,
Maximizing Optimal Maternity Services for the 21st Century, these individuals are promised some of the rights they deserve. Some of these rights include access to information and education about becoming a mother, and having people who are experts in the field ready to help them. As the representative of my district, I want you to support this bill.
The maternity situation in America is grim. The bill itself states that, despite being the country that spends the most on maternity costs, the outlook for mothers and their newborns is not much better than countries that spend far less. Among the most shocking of the facts presented is that everyday, two women die in America because of their pregnancy. The statistics are not getting any better, especially in the African American community, who suffer the most deaths, and have not seen improvement in the past five decades. The newborns are also suffering. Increasing numbers have been born prematurely or at a low birth weight, which can lead to physical problems for the child, along with cognitive and social delays. Mothers and their newborns make up most of the patients in hospitals and are responsible for near $1,000,000,000.00 worth of charges. Obviously, this is a topic worth looking into.

Some of the components of the bill seem like common sense, but still have to be addressed.
The bill proposes that medical practices that put mother and child at risk should be used with more discretion, while underused, but non-invasive and effective measures, like having the mother quit smoking while pregnant, become more stressed. Additionally, much of this bill pushes for the education of expectant mothers. Although this type of education will cost money, the pay-off, if it means healthier mothers and children, is immeasurable. For the cost of $2,500,000.00 annually, this bill would be able to do so much good in researching and collecting data about this group as well. Although some will argue that mothers get sufficient support and should have been educated in public school or through other means, it is obvious that this is not the reality. After spending so much on maternity costs, how could it be that so many nations are ahead of the United States in this? According to an Amnesty International report, the United States ranks 40 th
in death rates among mothers giving birth. Additionally, there are 63 countries that outrank this country in having less low weight births. Much of this can be corrected with this bill authorizing investment in this group of people.
When it comes time to vote for this bill, please support it. It means so much to expectant mothers, their newborns, and the people who care about them. If the general health of newborns is insufficient, they may have to endure a compromised quality of life, stay unhealthy, and become a burden on the already troubled healthcare industry, especially if their mothers are not educated in child rearing and prenatal care. To think about the infants of today is to have insight into the citizens of the future. Please support them in this way. Again, this bill is Maximizing Optimal
Maternity Services for the 21st Century - H.R.5807.
Thank you from your constituent,
Jennie Schmaler