Presidential Documents

22095 

Federal Register 

Vol. 87, No. 71 

Wednesday, April 13, 2022 

Title 3— 

The President 

Proclamation 10365 of April 8, 2022 

Black Maternal Health Week, 2022 

By the President of the United States of America 

A Proclamation 

Pregnancy and childbirth should be a dignified, safe, and joyful experience 

for all. For far too many mothers, however, complications related to pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum can lead to devastating health outcomes— 

including hundreds of deaths each year. This maternal health crisis is particularly devastating for Black women, who are more than three times as likely 

to die from pregnancy-related complications as white women, regardless 

of their income or education. During Black Maternal Health Week, we renew 

our commitment to addressing the crisis of Black maternal mortality and 

morbidity across the country. 

The Biden-Harris Administration remains fully committed to ameliorating 

these unacceptable disparities and building a health care system that is 

equitable and safe for Black families. The inequities that Black mothers 

face are not isolated incidents but, rather, the byproduct of systemic racism 

in our society that has festered for far too long. To root it out, and improve 

health outcomes, we must address a broad range of areas where unequal 

access persists along racial lines—including access to health care, adequate 

nutrition and housing, toxin-free environments, high-paying job sectors that 

provide paid leave, and workplaces free from harassment and discrimination. 

That is why the American Rescue Plan gives States the opportunity to 

provide 12 months of extended postpartum coverage to pregnant people 

enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. It is 

also why I signed the Protecting Moms Who Served Act—part of the Black 

Maternal Health ‘‘Momnibus’’ Act that Vice President Harris introduced 

in the Senate—to address the maternal challenges that women veterans 

face. It is why Vice President Harris hosted the first-ever White House 

Maternal Day of Action Summit and announced a nationwide call to action 

to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity. 

To improve perinatal health outcomes and maternal health equity, the Centers 

for Medicare & Medicaid Services intends to propose the first-ever hospital 

quality designation specifically focused on maternity care. In addition, the 

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration recently accepted applications for the Services Grant Program for Residential Treatment 

for Pregnant and Postpartum Women—a program that provides pregnant 

and postpartum women and their children with comprehensive substance 

use treatment and recovery support services across residential and outpatient 

settings. This year, the program will also extend services to fathers, partners, 

and other family members. 

In the year ahead, we must build on this work by further expanding access 

to maternal care, lowering health care costs, and making new investments 

to drive down mortality and improve maternal health. We are going to 

expand and diversify the maternal health workforce, improve maternal mental 

health treatment, bolster community-based programs, train providers, enhance research, and ensure that maternal care is better coordinated. This 

is more than just the right thing to do—it is also a strategic imperative 

that makes all of us healthier and all of us stronger. When women—regardless 

of race—do not receive the health care they need and deserve, it threatens 


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22096 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 71 / Wednesday, April 13, 2022 / Presidential Documents 

the strength and stability of our families, our communities, and our entire 

Nation. 

It is on all of us to ensure that no person’s race ever determines their 

health outcomes and that every person preparing to give birth is treated 

with dignity, safety, and respect in our health care system. During Black 

Maternal Health Week, we refocus on that effort and celebrate America’s 

extraordinary maternal health care workforce—including doulas and midwives, who offer crucial support for our Nation’s mothers throughout pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum and whose work is essential to the health 

and well-being of all of our mothers and children. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States 

of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution 

and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 11 through 

April 17, 2022, as Black Maternal Health Week. I call upon all Americans 

to raise awareness of the state of Black maternal health in the United 

States by understanding the consequences of systemic discrimination, recognizing the scope of this problem and the need for urgent solutions, amplifying 

the voices and experiences of Black women, families, and communities, 

and committing to building a world in which Black women do not have 

to fear for their safety, their well-being, their dignity, or their lives before, 

during, and after pregnancy. 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day 

of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-two, and of the 

Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fortysixth. 

[FR Doc. 2022–08074 

Filed 4–12–22; 11:15 am] 

Billing code 3395–F2–P 


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