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The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday called for more services for pregnant women living on the streets after two newborn babies died on Skid Row this month.
The call to action comes nearly three weeks after a woman gave birth on Nov. 8 at East 14th Street and South Alameda Avenue. The infant died the same day after being taken to Los Angeles General Medical Center, according to county records.
Six days later, Los Angeles police were alerted to the death of another newborn on Skid Row, 1.5 miles away from the first. Police said the baby may have fallen from a fourth-floor window and was found dead in an alley. Officers found a woman who was taken to a nearby hospital with pelvic bleeding earlier that morning. The woman was taken into custody and released pending investigation, police officials said.
After the two deaths, Supervisor Hilda Solis, whose district includes Skid Row, filed a motion asking county officials to come up with a plan to improve support for homeless pregnant women. It passed unanimously on Tuesday.
“Counties must explore ways to improve the delivery of health services to pregnant people experiencing homelessness to better meet the needs of infants and birthing people, from pregnancy to postpartum care.” ” the motion reads.
Sarah Wilson, president of Harvest Homes, which provides temporary housing to homeless pregnant women, said the deaths were indicative of a larger issue within the county’s various homeless services, where there are very few places for pregnant women to go. He said that it highlights the
“This is an issue I’ve been trying to bring attention to for a long time,” she said. “Most shelters here in Los Angeles don’t allow pregnant women to stay. They want people to move to a safer place, but in that case, that place doesn’t exist.”
Harvest Home’s two residential programs have enough space to house 27 women at a time. This year, Wilson said she has received 700 calls from people in need.
She said many of the women managed to stay off the streets until pregnancy shattered their semblance of stability.
“There are women who have been couchsurfing for 10 years and they don’t think they’re homeless until they realize, ‘Oh, I don’t really have a place to go and be and have kids.’ ” she said. “So pregnancy at this time of year could actually increase the number of people without housing.”
It’s unclear how many pregnant women are temporarily homeless in Los Angeles County. A 2016 survey by the county public health department found that about 3% of 5,600 new mothers reported experiencing homelessness at some point during their pregnancy.
Studies have shown that homelessness increases the likelihood of maternal and child health complications, including premature birth and newborns requiring intensive care.
“Traveling from place to place or going to the hospital for prenatal care is completely unhelpful for a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby,” she says, calling it the only place to give birth. said Terry Bright, program director at Elizabeth House. San Gabriel Valley Refuge.
She said the shelter receives 30 to 40 calls a month from women in need of services. Sometimes it takes six at a time.
“It’s heartbreaking to read about the babies who have died, but this is our reality,” she said. “There aren’t enough places for them to go.”
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