Dr. Lauren Christiansen-Lindquist attends US Congressional briefing on stillbirth
May 18, 2022
Shining a light on a hidden maternal and child health crisis
While awareness of early pregnancy losses, or miscarriages, is quite high, there is much less conversation about what happens when pregnancy losses occur later in gestation. In the United States, stillbirths are defined as pregnancy losses occurring at 20 weeks’ gestation or later, and they occur far more often than one might think: 21,478 babies were stillborn in 2019. Stillbirth rates have decreased very little since 2005, and the United States does not fare well on the world stage. Our stillbirth rates fall right in the middle of those of other high-income countries, and a study of 195 countries found only thirteen that performed worse than the US in reducing their stillbirth rates from 2000-2019.
Assistant Professor, Dr. Lauren Christiansen-Lindquist has studied stillbirth for several years, and explains why she’s starting to feel like we might be at a turning point:
“In October 2019, the SHINE for Autumn Act was introduced in the United States House of Representatives. This bipartisan legislation authorizes funding at both the federal and state levels to increase stillbirth education and awareness, improve data quality, and increase the number of physicians who are trained to conduct autopsies to learn why a stillbirth has occurred. This would be the first federal legislation to ever address stillbirth, and would set the United States on the path to beginning to make a real impact in reducing stillbirth rates.”
Dr. Christiansen-Lindquist has been working with stillbirth advocates and Autumn’s mom, Debbie Haine Vijayvergiya, to provide data to policymakers and stillbirth advocates about the importance of this bill.
On December 8, 2021, Dr. Christiansen-Lindquist was one of two scientists invited to discuss the importance of this legislation for addressing stillbirth in the US at the first-ever Congressional briefing on stillbirth. Later that day, the SHINE for Autumn Act went for a vote on the floor of the United States House of Representatives, where it received overwhelming bipartisan support. Just a few months later, the SHINE for Autumn Act has been introduced in the United States Senate by Senators Cory Booker and Marco Rubio. While awaiting a vote in the Senate, Dr. Christiansen-Lindquist has met with staff members from several Senators’ offices to keep the conversation about the SHINE for Autumn Act going. At this stage, Dr. Christiansen says: “I am feeling very hopeful and will be thrilled when the day comes when this bill makes it to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law.”
If you would like to share your support for the SHINE for Autumn Act (S.3974), please contact your US Senators.
