Brown introduces bill to address infant deaths

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) called on Congress to take up his legislation that aims to reduce infant death rates.

“No parent should have to grieve the loss of a child without access to answers and help,” Brown said on Thursday. “That’s why I am introducing the Sudden Unexpected Death Data Enhancement and Awareness Act to help doctors and researchers — like those at Dayton Children’s Hospital — begin to fight back against these tragic losses.”

{mosads}Brown’s bill would direct the secretary of Health and Human Services to standardize the protocols used by medical examiners in stillbirths and unexpected infant deaths. The bill would also encourage the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to establish a standard method of data collection for scene investigations and autopsies so that all agencies involved are on the same page.

He said the legislation is necessary because his state has a particularly high infant mortality rate; the cause of more than half of the nation’s stillbirths is unknown.

“Ohio is worst in the nation for African American infant mortality and 48th in the nation for all births,” Brown said. “This is unacceptable.” 

Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) is co-sponsoring the legislation, which was introduced right before the August recess.