Governor Hochul's recent initiatives aim to tackle New York's maternal and infant mortality crisis, which has seen alarming rates increase for the first time in two decades. The state ranks poorly in infant mortality and faces significant racial disparities, with Black women experiencing disproportionately higher mortality rates. Recent changes include bills for better maternal healthcare information and Medicaid coverage for maternal telemedicine. The new paid prenatal leave policy, extending 20 hours of paid leave, is a positive step—but more needs to be done to address inadequate financial support for recovering mothers and their families.
Currently in New York, a mother who is recovering physically from childbirth, which about 32% of the time includes a surgical C-section, gets paid a maximum benefit of $170 a week.
For the first time in two decades, maternal and infant mortality is on the rise in New York...the maternal mortality rate for Black women is more than four times the rate of white women.
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