Thread by @ashtonpittman

NEW: About 5,000 more babies will be born in Mississippi each year due to the Dobbs ruling and the abortion ban—but officials say the state is not prepared for the influx.

It's "a problem we need to solve," said Mississippi CPS Commissioner Andrea Sanders.mississippifreepress.org/28031/official…

“We heard testimony from Dr. Edney in particular, but others also, that as a result of the Dobbs decision, … that on a conservative basis, there will be 5,000 additional births,” said Mississippi Sen. Brice Wiggins, a Pascagoula Republican.
mississippifreepress.org/28031/official…

Dr. Edney’s testimony indicated that most of the additional 5,000 babies born due to Dobbs will be "unwanted or unplanned."

About 60% of kids in those circumstances “are on Medicaid” or “end up in the system," said Sen. Brice Wiggins, R-Pascagoula.
mississippifreepress.org/28031/official…

Sen. Brice Wiggins: “So are y’all prepared for 5,000 additional kids across the state (due to the Dobbs ruling)?”

CPS Commissioner Andrea Sanders: "No sir. Not by myself, I’m not."

Wiggins: "So that’s something we should be concerned about."
mississippifreepress.org/28031/official…

Mississippi is already the deadliest state for babies and fetuses alike.

Mississippi has the highest infant mortality rate, with 8 in 1,000 Mississippi children dying before their first birthday.

Mississippi also has the highest miscarriage rate.
mississippifreepress.org/28031/official…

Mississippi leads the nation in births to unmarried mothers, preterm births, miscarriages and low birthweights.

Mississippi’s pregnancy-related maternal death rate is 1.9x higher than the U.S. average, with Black moms at 3x times the risk of white moms.
mississippifreepress.org/28031/official…

More than half of Mississippi’s 82 counties do not have an OB-GYN, and many do not have hospitals.

Read this report from @nickjudin on why Mississippi is the most dangerous state for mothers and babies:
mississippifreepress.org/24632/doctors-…

“I think we’ve done an excellent job of protecting the baby in the womb. But once it’s out of the womb it’s like, ‘Whoop!’ You’re on your own,” Republican Mississippi Sen. Kevin Blackwell told his fellow lawmakers on the Senate floor in March.
mississippifreepress.org/28031/official…

In March, The Republican-led Mississippi Senate voted 46-5 to expand postpartum Medicaid coverage for news mothers from 60 days after giving birth to 12 months.

But anti-abortion Republican House Speaker Philip Gunn killed it in his chamber.
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“As I’ve said very publicly, I’m opposed to Medicaid expansion,” Speaker Gunn told the AP on March 9, erroneously conflating Medicaid expansion with the targeted postpartum extension. “We need to look for ways to keep people off, not put them on.” 
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On the day of the Dobbs ruling, Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn said he thinks that even a 12-year-old girl who became pregnant after being raped by her father or uncle should still be forced to give birth because "all life is precious."
mississippifreepress.org/25273/12-year-…

Speaker Philip Gunn’s Commission on Life is supposed to propose solutions to Mississippi's poor maternal, fetal and infant health outcomes.

But he opposes two policies that experts say could help most: Medicaid expansion and 12-months postpartum coverage.
mississippifreepress.org/27148/speaker-…

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