U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA) on Oct. 5 sponsored a bipartisan bill that aims to help lower the stillbirth rate in the United States that annually affects one out of every 160 births.
“No parent should have to go through the devastating stillbirth of a child, but sadly, as our country continues to grapple with high rates of stillbirth, each year more moms and dads will experience these heart wrenching tragedies,” Rep. Herrera Beutler said. “To the thousands of families who’ve lost a child to stillbirth, we see you.”
The congresswoman and lead cosponsor U.S. Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) introduced the Stillbirth Health Improvement and Education (SHINE) for Autumn Act, H.R. 5487, which would provide resources to state and federal health departments to improve research and data collection on stillbirths, and increase education and awareness on stillbirths in the United States.
Rep. Herrera Beutler, who is co-chair of the congressional Maternity Caucus, said she was proud to join her colleagues to support important legislation to improve stillbirth outcomes across the United States. “I’m committed to the goal of achieving more positive outcomes for moms and babies so that they can survive and live their lives to the fullest,” she said.
Specifically, H.R. 5487 would provide grants to states for the surveillance and data collection on stillbirths and stillbirth risk factors; develop guidelines and educational materials for state departments of health and statistics on stillbirth data collection, data sharing and educational materials on stillbirths; and establish the Perinatal Pathology Fellowship Program at the National Institutes of Health to increase research on stillbirths, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Herrera Beutler’s staff.
H.R. 5487 is named after Autumn Joy, who was stillborn on July 8, 2011. Her mother, Debbie Haine Vijayvergiya, founder of the 2 Degrees Foundation, endorsed the measure. “My hope is that we will see the SHINE for Autumn Act be passed this Congress so that we will finally be able to bring this tragic maternal health issue out of the shadows and ultimately shatter the deafening silence that surrounds stillbirth,” she said.