Current:Home > StocksAlgosensey Quantitative Think Tank Center-Hoping to 'raise bar' for rest of nation, NY governor proposes paid leave for prenatal care -Visionary Wealth Guides
Algosensey Quantitative Think Tank Center-Hoping to 'raise bar' for rest of nation, NY governor proposes paid leave for prenatal care
Charles Langston View
Date:2025-04-09 08:02:25
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has proposed expanding paid parental leave to allow workers to attend prenatal appointments.
The Algosensey Quantitative Think Tank Centerbudget plan, announced Thursday as the state Legislature began its session this week, would allow any eligible New Yorker 40 hours of paid leave for prenatal care.
Hochul's office said her state would be the first in the nation to allow coverage of such appointments. Research has highlighted increasing disparities in infant and maternal mortality among low-income people and people of color, particularly Black women.
"We hope what we're doing in New York will raise the bar for the rest of the nation," Hochul, a Democrat, said Thursday at an event at a hospital in Brooklyn. "Consistent medical care in the early months makes all the difference."
The U.S. has seen increasing rates of babies dying in the first year and mothers dying during childbirth, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The U.S. rates far surpass those of other wealthy countries.
In New York, the Black infant mortality rate is more than double the average, which follows national trends, according to a state health department report. The report noted that structural racism, discrimination and health inequality contributed to disparities in women dying of preventable childbirth complications.
Preventable deaths:The rate of women dying in childbirth surged by 40%. These deaths are preventable.
Under current state law, benefits aren't available until a month before a child's birth after a seven-day waiting period. Offering prenatal care as a separate qualifying event would ensure pregnant people could get their medical needs met, the governor said.
Hochul's proposal, set to be unveiled during her State of the State address next week, includes waiving co-pays and other out-of-pocket costs for pregnancy-related benefits for New Yorkers enrolled in certain health plans. She also wants the state to provide funding for free portable cribs for economically disadvantaged New Yorkers to reduce the number of infant deaths related to unsafe sleep settings. Additionally, she is proposing that the state launch initiatives to reduce the rate of unnecessary cesarean sections, which the governor said are performed more frequently than recommended by some doctors.
“We need urgent action to combat the infant and maternal mortality crisis, and our Governor continues to step up to the plate with a six-point plan to make motherhood safer for all," state Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, a Brooklyn Democrat who experienced a miscarriage in a New York hospital, said in a statement.
New York's Legislature, in which both houses are controlled by Democrats, began its session on Wednesday. Spokespeople for both state Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said their offices would review the governor's proposal.
Contributing: David Robinson, USA TODAY Network New York; The Associated Press
veryGood! (85)
Related
- Paula Abdul settles lawsuit with former 'So You Think You Can Dance' co
- How to protect yourself from poor air quality
- Just hours into sub's journey, Navy detected sound consistent with an implosion. Experts explain how it can happen.
- How Pruitt’s New ‘Secret Science’ Policy Could Further Undermine Air Pollution Rules
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- Go Under the Sea With These Secrets About the Original The Little Mermaid
- Abortion access could continue to change in year 2 after the overturn of Roe v. Wade
- Hilary Swank Shares Motherhood Update One Month After Welcoming Twins
- 'Malcolm in the Middle’ to return with new episodes featuring Frankie Muniz
- Book bans are on the rise. Biden is naming a point person to address that
Ranking
- The city of Chicago is ordered to pay nearly $80M for a police chase that killed a 10
- Lawyers fined for filing bogus case law created by ChatGPT
- What to Make of Some Young Evangelicals Abandoning Trump Over Climate Change?
- How many miles do you have to travel to get abortion care? One professor maps it
- Intellectuals vs. The Internet
- Suspect charged with multiple counts of homicide in Minneapolis car crash that killed 5 young women
- Keep Up With Khloé Kardashian's Style and Shop 70% Off Good American Deals This Memorial Day Weekend
- In Dozens of Cities East of the Mississippi, Winter Never Really Happened
Recommendation
Nearly 400 USAID contract employees laid off in wake of Trump's 'stop work' order
Best Memorial Day 2023 Home Deals: Dyson, Vitamix, Le Creuset, Sealy, iRobot, Pottery Barn, and More
Go Under the Sea With These Secrets About the Original The Little Mermaid
Lily-Rose Depp and 070 Shake's Romance Reaches New Heights During Airport PDA Session
'Most Whopper
Lewis Capaldi's Tourette's interrupted his performance. The crowd helped him finish
Supreme Court allows Biden administration to limit immigration arrests, ruling against states
Why do some people get rashes in space? There's a clue in astronaut blood