MISS Foundation Press Release

Feminists Groups Finally Hear the Cries of Women Experiencing Stillbirth

Guttmacher Institute the Center for Reproductive Rights, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the ACLU...and NARAL Pro-Choice America told Stateline.org they take a neutral position on the stillborn birth-certificate issue.

"We are hopeful that the remaining 31 states will pass with relative ease now that the opposition has changed their positions," said Joanne Cacciatore, CEO of the MISS Foundation and a social scientist who studies the effects of stillbirth on women. "It is important for many, many women from an emotional, psychological, and epidemiological perspective...and this is about advocating for these mothers."

Cacciatore notes that this paradigm shift in attitudes toward stillborn babies comes, in large part, as a result of a cooperative social movement between the MISS Foundation and other grassroots groups that provide support and resources to families experiencing infant and child death. "We are not going away," Cacciatore continues. "We are prepared to take our stand. It is the least we can do for these children and their families."

Stillborn laws entangled in abortion debate
By Christine Vestal, Stateline.org Staff Writer

Every year, some 35,000 women deliver babies who die just before or during birth. A number of parents say their grief over the tragic loss is made worse because most states simply issue death certificates, never recognizing the birth of their stillborn offspring. (continue)