Gift of Life, Alabama Department of Public Heath Announce September as Infant Mortality Awareness Month

MEDIA ALERT
Contact: Mona Davis, Marketing and Community Outreach
(334) 546-7181/ (334) 273-7800/mdavis@golfound.org
For Immediate Release: September 11, 2017

MONTGOMERY, AL— Last year in the state of Alabama nearly 500 babies never had the opportunity to celebrate their first birthday. The majority of those babies were African American, many were born in poverty, and others were born in an environment where they may not have received prenatal care early enough, or where their parents did not have the education or support that they needed to be healthy and survive.

September is National Infant Mortality Month and Gift of Life Foundation in partnership with the Alabama Department of Public Health will hold a news conference to discuss Montgomery County and the state’s high infant mortality rates on Tuesday, September 12 at 1 p.m. at the RSA Park located at 201 Monroe Street in front of the RSA Tower, downtown Montgomery.

Acting State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris and Gift of Life Executive Director Dr. Cheryl Davis will discuss what is believed to be contributing to the increase in the number of infant deaths in Montgomery and other regions across the state and what the community can do to help reduce infant mortality.