SENATE MEMORIAL 63

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2017

INTRODUCED BY

Michael Padilla

A MEMORIAL

RECOGNIZING THE MARCH OF DIMES AND DECLARING FEBRUARY 16, 2017, "MARCH OF DIMES DAY" IN THE SENATE.

     WHEREAS, the march of dimes has dedicated seventy-nine years to helping pregnant women reach full term and deliver healthy babies; and

     WHEREAS, the march of dimes helps moms have healthy babies through the contribution of resources for research and medical breakthroughs and the provision of education, outreach and vaccines; and

     WHEREAS, more than four million babies are born in the United States each year; and

     WHEREAS, the march of dimes facilitates preventive interventions to effectively prevent premature birth, which affects five hundred thousand families each year; and

     WHEREAS, birth defects are the leading cause of infant death and a major cause of pediatric hospitalization in the nation; and

     WHEREAS, in New Mexico, birth defects account for twenty-four percent of infant deaths; and

     WHEREAS, each year in New Mexico, approximately six hundred infants, or about one infant out of every forty-five infants, are born with a major birth defect and another thirty to forty infants are born with congenital hearing loss; and

     WHEREAS, babies born with birth defects have a greater chance of illness and long-term disability than babies without birth defects, and they often require additional health care and other services to support their growth and development; and

     WHEREAS, since 2000, birth defects have been a reportable condition in New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, the march of dimes helped establish the New Mexico birth defects registry, a birth defects surveillance system enacted in 2012 and maintained by the family health bureau of the department of health; and

     WHEREAS, having a birth defects surveillance system has enabled the state to:

          A. monitor the prevalence of birth defects by identifying clusters of occurrences that should be investigated;

          B. focus on and promote prevention activities;

          C. assess the impact of screening and prevention practices; and

          D. link children to necessary services, such as case management for those with complex medical needs and health care and early intervention services to maximize children's development potential; and

     WHEREAS, having this system in place has raised awareness of the importance of a birth defects surveillance system; and

     WHEREAS, the march of dimes is an active member of the state's infant mortality team, which pulls together all state agencies to address the health and well-being of mothers and babies in New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, in 2016, the New Mexico preterm birth rate of nine and five-tenths percent increased by three-tenths percent;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that it recognize the march of dime's seventy-nine years of service to improve prenatal and postnatal health care through research, vaccines, medical breakthroughs, education and outreach; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that February 16, 2017, be declared "March of Dimes Day" in the senate; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the secretary of health and the state director of program services and government affairs for the march of dimes.