Think Out Loud

Oregon bills attempt to address Black mother, infant death rates

By Sage Van Wing (OPB)
March 25, 2025 1 p.m. Updated: March 25, 2025 10:28 p.m.

Broadcast: Tuesday, March 25

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In Oregon and the rest of the country, Black infants are more likely to be born underweight, and both they and their mothers have a lower chance of surviving that first year of life than white and Hispanic ones.

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A package of bills in the Oregon legislature seeks to support perinatal health by expanding access to doulas, protecting young families from housing loss and eviction and expanding the Oregon child tax credit, among other things.

Kaylee Tornay, investigative reporter with InvestigateWest, recently wrote about Black maternal and infant health and joins us to explain.

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