Mississippi is All-Hands-On-Deck for Moms
For all Mississippi’s progress in job creation, infrastructure improvements, and student achievement, we have a lot of work to do to reverse negative trends in maternal healthcare. In recent years, Mississippi has had among the highest maternal mortality rates in the country. Half of our counties are considered maternity care deserts, or areas that lack hospitals, birth centers, or access to obstetric physicians. Too many moms lack adequate prenatal care. Nearly a quarter visited a doctor for the first time in their second or third trimester or did not see one at all.
The challenge is urgent, but the ray of hope is that most cases of maternal mortality are preventable. Mississippi’s leaders are taking an all-hands-on-deck approach to implementing those preventive measures. Local community members are meeting with families and offering practical help. State officials are researching root causes and building long-term solutions. In Congress, my colleagues and I are working to bring the resources of the federal government to support this work.
Mississippi’s Maternal Healthcare Hub
In 2026, I secured funding to help two Mississippi organizations as they seek to support moms. The funds will create the Center for Optimizing Maternal Outcomes (COMO), an organization that will be led by the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) and the Mississippi Public Health Institute.
COMO will become a hub of maternal healthcare for Mississippi. First, it will consolidate healthcare data and use it to clarify the actions we could take to help moms. The center will then bring together faith-based organizations, healthcare professionals, and other community leaders. They will study this data and agree on ways to deploy community members to assist—for example, by providing transportation support, nutrition assistance, or postpartum care.
Improved Screenings and Research
I have also worked with UMMC to help combat Mississippi’s tragically high rate of congenital syphilis, which occurs when mothers pass the disease to their babies during pregnancy. Last Congress, I helped UMMC secure funding to increase community education about this disease, to improve care for infected mothers, and to boost infection control measures. I have also sponsored a bill, the Maternal and Infant Syphilis Prevention Act, which would require the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to publish guidance that helps states reduce congenital syphilis rates. When untreated, the condition can cause health complications including miscarriage and stillbirth.
As too many Mississippians know, stillbirths are among the most heartbreaking events a parent can experience. For 30 years, the rate of stillbirths has remained flat—despite advances in other areas of healthcare. My colleagues and I introduced the SHINE for Autumn Act, which could help change that. The legislation would increase data collection and funding for research on this understudied tragedy.
Online Resources for Moms
I have also cosponsored a bill that would supplement these efforts by creating an online resource for families. The More Opportunities for Moms to Succeed Act, also called theMOMS Act, would create a website called parenting.gov. It would be designed specifically to help moms during and after pregnancy, including their child’s early development.
Parenting.gov would provide moms with information on resources in or near their zip code, including adoption agencies, pregnancy centers, legal services, and financial assistance support. The MOMS Act would require HHS to maintain a list of these resources so that moms have up-to-date information.
There is no single solution to Mississippi’s maternal health care crisis. It will take a host of dedicated efforts to support moms, dads, and babies and reverse negative trends. It is my hope that these bills, alongside the hard work done by community members and state leaders, will make Mississippi an even better place to raise a happy and healthy family.
