Mississippi declares infant deaths emergency as CDC program that could have helped is halted

State forced to stop gathering critical data on pregnancy experiences after Trump administration's shakeup

The Trump administration's shakeup of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has forced Mississippi to stop gathering critical data on women's experiences before, during and after pregnancy - even as the state recently declared a public health emergency over its surging infant mortality rate.

Mississippi has suspended data collection for Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (Prams), a national database that has been integral to policymaking on maternal and infant health for nearly four decades, the Guardian has learned.