Pregnancy Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Surrogacy Bill Hits Debate Roadblock

Surrogacy is legal in West Virginia and a Senate Bill aims to add legal structure to the process.

Currently, no law prohibits surrogacy in West Virginia. The only state code related to surrogacy states that commercial surrogacy is legal, meaning the pregnant person can be reimbursed for carrying a child.

Senate Bill 575 would add a legal framework for surrogacy, not a required contract. Counsel explained the amendments to the bill to Senators.

“It sets up again, the system, and if and what this basically says, this bill says is if you follow these steps, and you do it this way, your interests are protected,” staff counsel said.

Senators on the Judiciary Committee debated the bill at length Friday morning. Debates focused on residency requirements for the application of the law.

Some Senators, like Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, worried this bill would make West Virginia a destination for surrogacy.

“I am not happy with the amended amendment,” Rucker said. “I honestly think, two problems, if you aren’t a resident of this state why would you want WV law to apply to you? To me it’s like you’re inviting people to use our state for this. I was hopeful this wasn’t about making this a destination state for this.”

The committee voted to place the bill in a subcommittee made up of Senators Tom Takubo, R-Kanawha, Mike Caputo, D-Marion, and Rucker.

Questionnaire Helps Identify Eating Disorders In Pregnant Patients

The screening tool will give clinicians a fast, accurate way to determine if pregnant patients need care from an eating disorder specialist.

Some estimates indicate that approximately five percent of pregnant women suffer from eating disorders (ED). Now, a team of researchers with the WVU School of Public Health and School of Medicine have developed a 12-question screener to help identify those patients.

The screening tool will give clinicians a fast, accurate way to determine if pregnant patients need care from an eating disorder specialist.

According to the National Eating Disorders Association, an eating disorder during pregnancy increases the risk of complications for both the pregnant patient and their child, including preterm birth and low birthweight. Risks for the pregnant person include

West Virginia already has one of the highest preterm-birth rates in the nation, and a low-birthweight rate that exceeds the national average.

Estimates suggest that at least five percent of women experience some type of eating disorder during pregnancy. When the researchers published their findings in the “Archives of Women’s Mental Health”, they pointed out that other estimates are much broader from 0.6 to 27.8 percent, “indicating the challenges in identifying an ED in this population.”

W. Va. House Advances Expanded Medicaid Coverage For Postpartum Women

House Bill 2266 would extend Medicaid coverage for women one year after giving birth. Current law covers women for 60 days after delivery.

Republican Del. Matthew Rohrbach of Cabell County is the lead sponsor. He pointed to research that women are often most vulnerable to mental and physical health conditions several months after giving birth.

“The period seven to 12 months postpartum is the deadliest for these women because they lose access to their care,” he said.

A 2013 report from the state says of all maternal deaths from 2007-2012 in West Virginia, most occurred more than 60 days after delivery.

The bill would apply to women who make 185 percent of the federal poverty guideline. That would include single moms making less than $33,000 a year.

If passed, the coverage expansion would cost the state $1.4 million each year, according to a fiscal note.

The measure was approved 98-2 and now heads to the Senate.

West Virginia Gov. Justice Signs ‘Born Alive’ Abortion Bill Into Law

Gov. Jim Justice has signed into law a controversial bill that would force doctors to use “reasonable medical judgement” in the event of an unsuccesful abortion. The new law, which has been taken up by other red state legislatures in recent years, has been seen as largely symbolic — considering laws protecting newborns are already on the books.

At a Monday bill signing ceremony, Justice was surrounded by fellow Republicans — as well as those from West Virginians for Life, an anti-abortion rights group who has endorsed him for re-election.

“I stand for life — in all cases, at all times,” Justice said Monday.

Under House Bill 4007, the state medical board could revoke a doctor’s license if they fail to provide medical care as they would for a fetus of the same gestational age.

Justice said it was “unbelievable, to tell you the truth, that we have to do such a thing,” referring to the legislation just before he signed it.

Medical profressionals have said instances of fetuses being born alive post-abortion are rare. Elizabeth Nash, state policy analyst at the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights, has said such proposals come up around election seasons to “gin up the base in some way.”

Democrats in the state Legislature called the bill an election year stunt that attempts to address a problem that does not exist. Still yet, many of those in the minority party voted in favor of the measure.

Republicans painted a picture in which a fetus would be clinging to life and could survive with proper care.

West Virginia currently bans abortions after 20 weeks of gestation. The state’s lone abortion provider in Charleston self-imposes a ban at 16 weeks. But a fetus is generally not considered viable until 23 weeks.

The United States Senate rejected last week sending a similar piece of legislation to a final vote.

The Associated Press contributed reporting to this story.

W.Va.'s Healthy Start Initiative Receives $1 Million to Support Pregnant Women

$1 million has been awarded to West Virginia to help improve the health of pregnant women and their children.

The United States Department of Health and Human Services’ Healthy Start Initiative awarded the funds to the West Virginia University Research Corporation.

U.S. Sens. Shelley Moore Capito and Joe Manchin made the announcement in a joint press release Monday.

The funding is expected to help improve the health of mothers and children before, during, and after pregnancy by providing education, resources, and support.

“Alarmingly, maternal mortality rates are on the rise in the United States, and statistics are even more troubling in rural states like West Virginia,” Capito said. “In addressing this serious issue, grants like these help develop strategies and services that can improve health outcomes for mothers and their children both during pregnancy and after. The Healthy Start Initiative has been successful in West Virginia, and I’m hopeful these funds will continue to support families and save lives.”

“This funding will help improve the health of mothers and children in rural areas and ensure that they have access to health care through the Healthy Start Initiative. Many West Virginians benefit through this funding that helps reduce infant and maternal deaths through education and guidance for women in communities across our state. I applaud the work of the Healthy Start Initiative and as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, will continue to support the funding of such wonderful projects,” Manchin said.

Since the Healthy Start Initiative began in 1991, it has grown from a demonstration project in 15 communities to 100 Healthy Start projects in 37 states and Washington, DC.

Gestational Diabetes May Put Women at Risk for Kidney Disease

A new study from the National Institues of Health has found that gestational diabetes may put women at a higher risk of developing early-stage kidney disease.

Up to ten percent of American women experience gestational diabetes – a condition in which women who did not have diabetes prior to pregnancy get it during pregnancy. It’s unknown how many West Virginia women experience the condition, but gestational diabetes significantly increases women’s risk of developing type two diabetes after giving birth. And West Virginia has the highest rate of type two diabetes in the country.

Diabetes is known to increase the risk for chronic kidney disease. Researchers were trying to determine if gestational diabetes also had an affect on kidney function.

Using a blood test, researchers found evidence that gestational diabetes may predispose women to early-state kidney disease – the precursor to chronic kidney disease.

The treatment and prevention for gestational diabetes is similar to that of type two diabetes: start pregnancy at a normal weight, eat healthy, exercise and watch blood sugar levels.

Appalachia Health News is a project of West Virginia Public Broadcasting, with support from the Marshall Health, Charleston Area Medical Center and WVU Medicine.