Delaware County hopes to tackle high death rates among infants and mothers with nearly $1 million in federal funding

A nearly $1 million federal grant will help address troubling racial disparities in maternal and infant health in Delaware County.

The money will be used to create a training program for perinatal community health workers and doulas, said Monica Taylor, director of Delaware County Council. State and county officials on Tuesday gathered outside the Delaware County Courthouse in Media to announce the $954,000 grant.

Black women in Delaware County are almost four times more likely than white women to die during pregnancy or in the months after giving birth, according to data gathered from 1999 to 2020 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Infant mortality among Black babies has increased in Delaware County, while declining among white babies, said Melissa Lyon, director of the Delaware County Health Department.

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Nationally, 10 non-Hispanic Black babies born per 1,000 die in infancy, compared to 4.4 white babies per 1,000, according to the CDC.

In Delaware County, Black babies have an infant mortality rate of nearly 13 deaths per 1,000 live births, according to the county health department.

The $954,000 community federal grant “will help to ensure that every pregnant woman has a healthy pregnancy and that babies have a healthy start when they’re brought into this world,” Taylor said.

The training program, to be designed through Delaware County’s year-old Department of Health, could be ready by late summer or early fall, Taylor said. Area nonprofits focused on mothers’ and infants’ health will be able to apply for a portion of the funding to support their training programs.

The initiative is intended to counter the influences of unequal access to health care and the economic and educational factors that all play a role in maternal and infant mortality rates. Last year’s closure of Delaware County Memorial Hospital, one of the county’s birthing hospitals, exacerbated the need for workers trained to aid pregnant women, Taylor said.

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The United States has one of the worst infant mortality rates among the world’s most developed nations, said U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, who spoke at the news conference and, with Pennsylvania Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, worked to get the grant money for Delaware County.

Institutional racism within health-care systems and unconscious bias among doctors contributes to worse outcomes in infant and maternal health for Black parents of all economic backgrounds, compared to white families.

“We need to have the best health care in the world,” Casey said. “We need to have the best outcome for moms and their children in the world.”