Op-Ed: Protecting Infant Health Means Protecting Hip 2.0
Op-Ed: Protecting Infant Health Means Protecting Hip 2.0
By: State Rep. Maureen Bauer (D-South Bend)
Word Count: 450
Indiana just marked a milestone: in 2024, our infant mortality rate dropped to 6.3 deaths per 1,000 live births. This is the lowest rate since records began in 1900, and progress worth acknowledging.
But it’s not enough.
Our rate still exceeds the national average of 5.6. Behind each number is a child who did not make it to their first birthday. With 517 infant deaths across the state, we still have far to go. Now, the same state leaders celebrating this fragile progress have made budget decisions that put it at risk. This year’s budget cut the very programs that helped us get here. Essential maternal and infant health initiatives are being scaled back at a time when families need more support, not less.
Nearly half of all births in Indiana are covered by Medicaid. HIP 2.0 is a lifeline, providing prenatal and postpartum care, well-baby checkups, breastfeeding and nutrition support, and safe sleep education. Cuts to these programs will hit low-income and rural communities the hardest, where options for care are scarce or non-existent. At the same time, federal support for the Safe to Sleep campaign has ended. Indiana’s local efforts to prevent sleep-related deaths continue, but without national resources and coordination, their reach is limited.
State public health funding has also been slashed. In my district, these cuts forced the closure of the Mishawaka health department office. That means families will face longer commutes, longer wait times, and greater demand on already strained nearby clinics. These are the real consequences of defunding healthcare.
Even Health First Indiana, a statewide initiative to improve maternal and child health services, saw its budget cut from $125 million to $40 million per year. That means fewer home visits, fewer mental health services, and fewer chances to intervene early to save lives.
We also cannot ignore the disparities. In 2023, Black infants in Indiana died at a rate of 13.8 per 1,000 births. That is more than double the rate of white infants, whose mortality rate was 5.1. In my district, the 46628 ZIP code had the second-highest infant mortality rate in the state between 2019 and 2023. That reality demands targeted, sustained investment.
We know what works. When we invest in families, we save lives. Infant mortality is the number one indicator of health status in the world. Now is not the time to retreat. Protecting infant health means protecting HIP 2.0. It means funding public health, not gutting it. It means ensuring that every Hoosier family, no matter their ZIP code, has access to care, support, and a fair start in life.
Let’s act with urgency and compassion. When children’s lives are at stake, shifting into reverse is not an option.