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March of Dimes Calls on US House Appropriators to Help Prevent Prematurity and Birth Defects
Washington, D.C., May 8, 2003— Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, president of the March of Dimes, testified today before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.), who is a long time leader in maternal and child health issues and a senior member of this subcommittee, introduced Dr. Howse.
“Too many babies are being born too soon—more than 476,000 babies in the U.S. were born prematurely in 2001. A 27 % increase since 1981. Though most Americans are not aware of it, prematurity is the number one problem in obstetrics today and a very serious problem in pediatrics,” Dr. Howse told the Subcommittee members. Supporting the Foundation’s Prematurity Campaign, Dr. Howse called on members of the Subcommittee to increase prematurity-related research funding at the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) at the National Institutes of Health by at least $50 million over the next five years.
Dr. Howse also told the Subcommittee that “Although nearly all babies born in the U.S. undergo newborn screening tests for genetic birth defects, the number and quality of these tests vary from state to state.” She urged the Members to provide $25 million to support the Health Resources and Services Administration’s work with states to implement the newborn screening program authorized in Title 26 of the Children’s Health Act of 2000.
In addition, Dr. Howse called on the Subcommittee to increase funding to $125 million in FY 2004 for the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Foundation recommended that the Subcommittee direct additional funding to three Center supported programs: state birth defects surveillance cooperative agreements, folic acid education and research underway at the ten regional Centers on Birth Defects Research and Prevention.
Drawing on March of Dimes history in finding ways to prevent poliomyelitis, Dr. Howse told the Subcommittee that “The March of Dimes supports a funding level of $106.4 million for CDC’s FY 2004 global polio eradication activities. With only 7 countries now having endemic polio, it is important that the U.S. government maintain its commitment to worldwide eradication of polio.”
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