My Proposal
It is necessary to improve understanding of how different factors contribute to the risk of birth, particularly that involving race, because of how many infants die preventable deaths every year. If more funding is directed towards widening the scope of and modernizing the materials of medical school programs and lectures, medical students will be more prepared for the workforce. Current medical schools consistently neglect external forces that complicate the needs of their patients which results in ineffective care.
Unfortunately, this problem is large and multi-faceted. It is not just medicinal science but systemic injustice itself which impacts the health of Black American women. These women experience stressors in their daily lives that impact their phenotype expression and, consequently, their health (Campbell). In other words, the added fear and stress of living in a racist and misogynistic society raises average blood pressure among other things, which creates unsafe conditions for birth.
So what must we do to remedy the problem?
We must fund social services and medicare for all so that these women can get assistance for themselves and their families. The second component of my proposal is to fund research for maternity and external forces that impact its risks while also funding modern programs that embrace the multicultural reality we live in.
Social services and medicare are vital because money is an unethical barrier between decent care and no care at all. Given that Black Americans are disproportionately impacted by poverty, it is no surprise that this demographic is similarly impacted by poor health care. Social services can provide resources to reduce the impact of stressors in everyday life which, over time, contribute to the "phenotype expression - or weathering - that damages the body like high blood pressure" (Olsen). Research will have to be done about the impact of this program, but since research has shown the damage this stress has done in eroding the health of Black women, it is imperative that something is done about it sooner rather than later.
As previously discussed, eugenics and the otherwise violent history of medical science has not only deteriorated trust between Black women and medical practitioners but has resulted in incorrect and racist beliefs within medical science. Many modern medical texts still perpetuate the myth that Black people have thicker skin and "respond less to painful stimuli" compared to other people (Surname). This belief leads doctors to under prescribing pain medication and can make it more likely for these patients to receive rough treatment since it's believed they won't feel it. Updating medical texts and improving lessons and lectures in medical schools across the country can go a long way to remedying the harmful beliefs that invade the medical industry.
Obviously, these are proposals that require money and time to yield results. However, I have already covered the many risks of leaving this problem unaddressed, and those issues will continue to compound every generation if it remains unresolved. Investing money now will not only create stronger medical care in the entire country but will also improve the economy because it will no longer be burdened by the weight of lost time and lost resources. It is predicted that these changes to healthcare will "cost taxpayers 23 billion dollars over the course of five years" (Campbell). This sounds daunting, but it's quite achievable. After all, the United States spent 803 billion dollars on the military in 2021 (Kennedy). It's not a significant portion of the country's budget by any means and will save lives. This proposal will create a healthier America while guaranteeing future generations are robust members of society rather than statistics.
