“Every newborn baby enters the world in the most vulnerable, tender condition. Access to quality prenatal and postnatal care is vital to a mother’s and baby’s health and quality of life.

Unfortunately, in New Mexico, too many expecting and new mothers experience maternal and child health complications that can easily be avoided with routine care. Often, the primary contributing factor is the lack of access to health insurance coverage. According to a March of Dimes report, New Mexico has one of the highest uninsured rates of childbearing-age women in the United States.

New Mexico faces an unusually higher maternal mortality rate, with a disproportionately greater rate among the Native American population — approximately 20%, despite composing only 11% of the population. According to data from the New Mexico Department of Health and the New Mexico Birth Equity Collaborative, Black mothers have a maternal mortality rate that is four times higher than the state average for all races.”