Associated Press Published

Pfizer Foundation Grant to Assist Drug-Ravaged Moms, Babies

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The Pfizer Foundation has awarded a $500,000 grant in West Virginia for rehabilitation services for drug-addicted mothers and their newborns who are born dependent on drugs.

Gov. Jim Justice announced the grant in a statement Monday.

The statement says the Pfizer Foundation will partner with the Department of Health and Human Resources in a project based in Cabell County.

It will combine services offered through Huntington infant drug recovery center Lily’s Place and for pregnant women and new mothers at the Hoops Family Children’s Hospital at Cabell Huntington Hospital.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, West Virginia has the nation’s highest rate of babies born dependent on drugs. The DHHR says the statewide rate for neonatal abstinence syndrome was 50.6 for every 1,000 live births last year.