Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today applauded the President’s signature on his bipartisan bill to reduce infant deaths and disabilities by expanding research, education, and intervention activities related to preterm birth. Bennet sponsored the PREEMIE Reauthorization Act with Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), the ranking member on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee of which Bennet is a member.
“This new law will help doctors and medical researchers learn more about infant deaths and disabilities, and how to treat and prevent them,” Bennet said. “In an average week in Colorado, 138 infants are born preterm and are at much higher risks of medical conditions that can severely shorten their lives. This research will help give those kids the best possible start in life.”
The “PREEMIE” bill passed the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee by voice vote in February. The legislation reauthorizes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) research and programs on preterm birth, including improving national data tracking on preterm birth, and conducting studies. The bill also reauthorizes programs at the Health Resources and Services Administration aimed at improving the treatment and outcome for infants born premature.
A companion bill was introduced in the House by Representatives Anna G. Eshoo (D-Calif.) and Leonard Lance (R-N.J.). The bill is supported by the March of Dimes Foundation, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses, the Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs, and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine.