Black Maternal Health Week, 2021
| Published date | 16 April 2021 |
| Citation | 86 FR 20023 |
| Record Number | 2021-08008 |
| Section | Presidential Documents |
| Court | Executive Office Of The President |
Presidential Documents
20023
Federal Register
Vol. 86, No. 72
Friday, April 16, 2021
Title 3—
The President
Proclamation 10178 of April 13, 2021
Black Maternal Health Week, 2021
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
In the United States of America, a person’s race should never determine
their health outcomes, and pregnancy and childbirth should be safe for
all. However, for far too many Black women, safety and equity have been
tragically denied. America’s maternal mortality rates are among the highest
in the developed world, and they are especially high among Black mothers,
who die from complications related to pregnancy at roughly two to three
times the rate of white, Hispanic, Asian American, and Pacific Islander
women—regardless of their income or education levels. This week, I call
on all Americans to recognize the importance of addressing the crisis of
Black maternal mortality and morbidity in this country.
Ensuring that all women have equitable access to health care before, during,
and after pregnancy is essential. The Biden-Harris Administration is com-
mitted to addressing these unacceptable disparities, and to building a health
care system that delivers equity and dignity to Black, Indigenous, and other
women and girls of color.
Health care is a right, not a privilege, and our country needs a health
care system that works for all of us. That is something both Vice President
Harris and I have fought for throughout our careers. As a Senator, Vice
President Harris was a champion of Black maternal health, introducing
legislation to close gaps in access to quality maternal care and educate
providers about implicit bias. And during my time as Vice President, I
fought for the Affordable Care Act and to strengthen Medicaid, both of
which ensure access to critical services to support maternal health. Within
just a few years of the Affordable Care Act’s passage, Black uninsured
rates dramatically declined—a key factor in ensuring better maternal health
outcomes—as did the persistent health insurance coverage gap between Black
and white Americans, which fell by more than 40 percent in the wake
of the law’s implementation.
As we fight to bring an end to the COVID–19 crisis, we will continue
to make quality health care more accessible and affordable for all Americans,
as we did through the passage of the landmark American Rescue Plan.
We will also work to ensure that everyone—including hospitals, insurance
plans, and health care providers—do their part to provide every American
with quality, affordable, and equitable care.
Vice President Harris and I are committed to pursuing systemic policies
that provide comprehensive, holistic maternal health care that is free from
bias and discrimination. The morbidity and mortality disparities that Black
mothers face are not the results of isolated incidents. Our Nation must
root out systemic racism everywhere it exists, including by addressing un-
equal social determinants of health that often contribute to racial disparities
such as adequate nutrition and housing, toxin-free environments, high-paying
job sectors that provide paid leave, and workplaces free of harassment and
discrimination.
Addressing systemic barriers across the board will improve outcomes for
Black mothers and their families, and make our entire country stronger,
healthier, and more prosperous. At the same time, the United States must
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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 72 / Friday, April 16, 2021 / Presidential Documents
also grow and diversify the perinatal workforce, improve how we collect
data to better understand the causes of maternal death and complications
from birth, and invest in community-based organizations to help reduce
the glaring racial and ethnic disparities that persist in our health care system.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States
of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution
and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 11 through
April 17, 2021, as Black Maternal Health Week. I call upon all Americans
to raise awareness of the state of Black maternal health in the United
States by understanding the consequences of systemic discrimination, recog-
nizing the scope of this problem and the need for urgent solutions, amplifying
the voices and experiences of Black women, families, and communities,
and committing to building a world in which Black women do not have
to fear for their safety, their wellbeing, their dignity, and their lives before,
during, and after pregnancy.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirteenth day
of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
fifth.
[FR Doc. 2021–08008
Filed 4–15–21; 8:45 am]
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