Sponsor Statement for SB 117

Requiring Infant Care Education for Teens

SB 117 adds "infant care" instruction to what is currently encouraged in AS 14.30.360(a) for each school district to include in its' health education curriculum.

The State of Alaska currently has state of the art government programs to promote infant/child/family health, such as Head Start; WIC; Maternal, Child & Family Health Program; and the Healthy Baby/Healthy Kids program. In spite of this, in a study from 1985-1993, Alaska's infant mortality rate was consistently higher than that of the rest of the United States. Particularly concerning is the fact that Alaska's infant mortality rate is especially higher after the third month of an infants life. This could be indicative of a lack of appropriate infant care.

In a study of the six WAMI states, Alaska was listed as having the best record for prenatal care, the fewest low weight births, and the lowest births to mothers under the age of 18. However, Alaska still had the highest infant mortality rate of the states studied. The disparity of these figures once again points to a lack of appropriate infant care.

Requiring infant care to be included in high school health care curriculum will give young Alaskans the basic infant care skills that statistics indicate may be lacking and causing Alaska's infant mortality problems.

One of the leading causes of death for infants in both Alaska and the rest of the United States is Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. 100% of infants who died of SIDS in Alaska from 1992 - 1995 were found in the prone sleep position, had been placed to sleep on inappropriate bedding, or had a mother who smoked cigarettes. These are factors that could be significantly reduced and hopefully eliminated with proper infant care education.

Abuse and neglect are also factors that figure in the health and welfare of infants. These are two problems that also could hopefully be prevented or reduced with proper infant care education.

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