Political Quotes

“Mr. President, November is Prematurity Awareness Month, but as the month comes to an end, our fight against preterm births and complications caused by prematurity continues daily in hospitals, homes, and research facilities across the country. Each year in the United States, more than half a million babies are born prematurely. More startling, over the last 25 years, the rate of preterm birth has increased more than 36 percent. Today, prematurity is the leading cause of newborn death in the United States. Additionally, a preterm baby is four times more likely to have at least one medical condition, such as cerebral palsy and learning and behavioral problems. And the life-long health complications caused by pre-term birth also have a serious financial burden on the child and parent. A premature birth costs, on average, $51,000 in the first year alone; premature births cost our nation $26 billion annually. Yet, despite the costs in lives lost and families burdened, medical research and innovation continues find new cures and therapies. On the Federal level, beginning in 2003, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) invested approximately $21 million in research for a drug--progesterone or 17P--to prevent preterm birth. 17P was found to reduce preterm births by 37 percent in high-risk pregnancies, and compounding pharmacists were able to provide compounded 17P to women for a mere $10-$20 a dose.…”