Maine pols eye fixes to racial disparity in prenatal care

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - A Maine lawmaker has introduced a bill designed to address racial disparity in prenatal care among expectant mothers in the state.

Democratic State Sen. Anne Carney of Cape Elizabeth touted the bill during a Tuesday public hearing.

She cited a 2020 study that found the infant mortality rate among children of Black women in Maine was 1.4 times higher than the same rate for white women in the state.

Carney’s proposal would direct a state commission to study disparities in access to prenatal care in the state and craft legislative fixes.